


Glints Saga: Dove

by LilithFairen



Series: Glints Saga [2]
Category: Original Work
Genre: Anti-Villain, Conflicted Protagonist, Dark Magical Girl, Dysfunctional Family, Female Friendship, Friendship, Gen, Heroic Antagonist, Lesbian Characters, Magical Girls, Monster of the Week, Second Chances, Urban Fantasy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-03
Updated: 2020-10-19
Packaged: 2021-03-04 20:01:35
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 30
Words: 90,672
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25042078
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LilithFairen/pseuds/LilithFairen
Summary: All Nixe Fulton ever wished for was a normal teenage life. In the midst of a new magical crisis, with once-peaceful Outsiders suddenly turning into berserk monsters, Nixe discovers she is anything but normal: she is one of five girls bestowed with mysterious powers to oppose this threat. Her magic could save Garden City, and it could change what Nixe has always believed to be unchanging—but pursuing that hope could place her against her fellow magical heroines.
Series: Glints Saga [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2152638
Comments: 8
Kudos: 17





	1. Light

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've been through a bit of a revision of the current Glints Saga novels, tweaking a few things here and there. While I had been up to Chapter 17 of Dove here, to keep things consistent throughout what's posted, the rest has been removed for now. I'll be working on getting the chapters back up as soon as possible—again, apologies to all readers who have been waiting for the continuation of the story.
> 
> While most of the tweaks have been minor, there's one semi-significant lore change that has been made to the series. The original plan was to have "Glints" become the title the magical girls are known as by the end of the fourth book; however, a new idea occurred to me, and I also figured that people might be confused about the title of the series if it took that long to explain.
> 
> Therefore, said lore change is that "Glints" is how the Outsiders refer to the magical girls, much as humankind knows them as "heroines". The reason for this comes up in the second-last chapter of Papillon.
> 
> Again, apologies for the inconvenience to readers. I want the Glints Saga to be the best it can be, and sometimes that involves coming up with better ideas a little late into the game. I do hope you continue to read and enjoy these stories, and that you seek out and support other magical-girl content creators!
> 
> (I will also let y'all know that I have started writing the third book, Glints Saga: Vanilla. =^_^=)

The wind ruffled through the feathers that formed her hair, and blew between the wing-like flaps of her outfit. Yet the brisk winter gale didn’t bring the slightest shiver to her.

The only thing she answered to was the sound of her own name, spoken above the whistling and howling about her.

“Dove!” cried the voice again.

The girl in white looked over her shoulder, then slowly turned around. The other girl stood still across from her, clad in a garment of yellow and lavender. A shimmering band of golden light trailed from the baton in the other girl’s right hand, her fingers wrapped tight around its grip.

Their eyes met, and the girl in yellow’s narrowed in turn as she stood ready to strike.

* * *

Nixe’s hand froze inches away from her front door. Her body refused to move an inch either forward or away. How must she have looked to the students on the sidewalk behind her? They were excited to be free at last from another week of school, looking forward to the weekend. What awaited Nixe? Dinner, homework, TV…

…and her mom.

She slowly drew her hand back. If her father had been home, he would have been furious over the mere idea of her not coming straight home, especially so soon after another Outsider attack. But his car wasn’t in the driveway, and hadn’t been for nearly a month now. Her mom didn’t watch the news, she wouldn’t know about the recent attack. She wouldn’t have cared about it either.

She wouldn’t care.

Nixe turned away from her house and rejoined the current of students headed down Talbot Drive from the bus stop. She overheard plans for the weekend, discussions of shows and bands, complaints about teachers and homework. A few had plans together; what did Nixe intend to do? Just go anywhere, do anything, as long as it kept her away from home that much longer?

She’d brought her tablet with her to school; perhaps she could stop in at the neighbourhood Fireside for a cappuccino. Maybe a walk through the nearby park, ride on the swing-set if there weren’t any little kids around. Or had the latest _Lunal Knight_ novel been returned to the library yet?

That seemed like a plan. Her mom wouldn’t think twice if Nixe told her she’d just been at the library. Her mom never cared about any of her excuses.

Another student split off towards their front doors here and there, and each intersection divided the group further. Nixe continued along Talbot Drive, staring at all of the homes other kids weren’t hesitant to enter. Each house was one of a handful of different styles and a handful of varying bland colours, alloted its tidy square-shaped fenced yard. Most had a second floor, most had occupied driveways and garages, and each had a tree either in the back yard or the front. Some attempted to mask the uniformity of Garden City’s suburbs with flowerbeds or lawn ornaments, decorations her own single-storey home lacked.

Nixe forced her stare away from happier homes to the sidewalk ahead. She stopped at the corner of Talbot and Meadow, gazing across the intersection. A few kids were headed for the local Fireside, Garden City’s resident coffee-shop chain, at the corner in front of the neighbourhood Freshville. Maybe she could pass some time browsing the web while sipping her cappuccino.

As she crossed the street, Nixe spotted someone else approaching the front door, someone clearly not a high-school student. If the green skin and leafy hair hadn’t been a clear give-away, the “hands” made of tendrils that coiled around the handle of the door would have been. A group of students had been about to enter; they stopped, staring at the verdant figure holding the door open, before they headed for the other entrance on the side. One girl walked out through the open door, glancing to the green person before hastening her pace away.

The Outsider let go of the door, and walked away from the coffeeshop. What was an Outsider doing in the suburbs anyway? She’d rarely seen them around before the Eden High incident, and not a single one since then, even on the bus to and from Amaryllis High. Either way, she forced herself to stop staring. They seemed like a nice person, but…still, thinking of their weird “hands” or whatever they were brought a shiver to Nixe. If they had been some kind of plant-person, then their limbs must have been clusters of vines, just like…

…like that one Outsider at Eden High.

That squelched any longing Nixe had for a nice drink. Cappuccinos were kind of expensive, and she could use the library’s wi-fi anyway. Nixe turned away from the Fireside, hoping to put that Outsider out of mind as she started down Meadow Lane.

Given than an Outsider just like them was the whole reason she had to go to another school downtown now, putting them out of mind proved harder than she’d thought.

= ~ = ~ = ~ = ~ =

The Meadow branch of the Garden City Public Library occupied the space of two house lots. A few elderly folks sat on the benches near the building, nestled in the shade of a semi-circle of trees. The wide windows at the front of the library gave a view of numerous bookcases with and the occasional peruser of the shelves.

As Nixe entered, she spotted other teenagers sitting with friends at the tables—probably Eden High classmates who’d been sent to different schools in the city. At least they kept their conversations quiet, a small shred of respect for the place. One of the librarians flashed Nixe a suspicious look at she glanced his way, as if he figured she was here to do the same. She was here often enough, the librarians had to know she’d never chatted with anyone here.

She headed for the fantasy shelves, searching under _M_ for Cora Morland. Most of the _Lunal Knight_ series was there—including _Lunal Harvest_! Taking the book, Nixe started for the front…but halted. Would her mother mind if she was home late? As long as she was home in time for supper…and even if she wasn’t, her mom would probably just tell her to reheat it in the microwave.

Nixe settled down in her favourite chair in the corner, furthest away from other seats, near a window she could see the nearby park through. She took her tablet out of her backpack. Her dad had offered to buy her a phone for her sixteenth birthday, but she’d insisted that a tablet was a better fit for her. Nothing caught her interest on her favourite channels and sites, though.

Tucking her tablet away, Nixe spotted a bluebird on the ledge just outside the window, hopping along and looking to the older folks on the benches. It turned its head the other way as Nixe leaned in closer, startling the bird into flight away from the window. Nixe’s smile disappeared as it vanished from sight.

After a few moments of staring where the bird had been, Nixe relaxed back in her seat, setting her attention upon _Lunal Harvest_.

= ~ = ~ = ~ = ~ =

The sky outside was shedding the last of daylight when Nixe finally settled a bookmark into the middle of the novel. The heroine Ulrene had just taken her first flight upon Thysania, a man-sized moth that had formed a telepathic bond with the swordswoman. The descriptions of how the leaves lashed at Ulrene, how nearby branches flickered by while distant trees accelerated towards her… Nixe had reread that passage twice, her image of the scene sharpening until she could imagine the wind, the speed, the feeling of being so far above the forest floor. It wouldn’t be much unlike flying through the streets and suburbs, soaring between the towers and skyscrapers of downtown Garden City…

…flying free, if only just for a single day…

She checked her tablet—it was nearly six o’clock. Her mom probably wouldn’t care about her being home late anyway, but the rest of _Lunal Harvest_ could wait.

Before Nixe stood up, she spotted someone browsing the bookshelves. She’d never seen anyone actually browse through a library by running their fingers along the spines of the books, but this person was doing just that—not with fingers, but with several vines that twisted and bunched to form arm-like limbs.

Every detail of their appearance brought a chill that kept Nixe frozen in her seat, yet she couldn’t draw her eyes away. Their hair was a layered mess of leaves, some nearly long enough to touch the Outsider’s shoulders. Their “feet” were like their hands, formed of gnarled browning roots. What they wore now seemed like a poncho made of moss, some kind of garment that hung down to their “knees”.

The other one been wearing human clothing before, Nixe was certain. Just like…that one Outsider of their kind, one of the ones who’d been allowed to attend Eden High School. Several had been permitted to join in on human classes, as a way for them to learn about the human world. One of them had been in Nixe’s biology class, one like the plant-Outsider now looking through the books in the library, but much more feminine in appearance. Nixe hadn’t known anything about her, had never talked to her.

Her gym class had been outside playing softball the day it’d happened. First she heard the screams of surprise from other students and even the gym teacher, then shattering glass raining down upon the parking-lot pavement. She’d turned to see vines bursting out of windows, moss creeping up the walls, roots winding around the doors to hold them shut. Anyone who’d tried to attack the plants had been struck themselves, and whatever damage they’d done quickly mended itself. Most of the gym class had fled; Nixe had remained, unable to pull herself away from the sight.

Half an hour after it had begun, the vines and moss began to wither and wilt, fading away and allowing the students and staff inside to escape. Police officers who’d just arrived on the scene questioned whoever was willing to talk—they’d asked Nixe, but she was still too stunned to say anything. What she’d overheard from other students they’d talked to was that it was supposedly that shy, docile plant-girl Outsider who’d caused it, had seemingly gone crazy…and what had stopped her hadn’t been the other Outsider students, but a human girl with magical powers, dressed in a strange costume. Just like the heroines from eight years ago, the ones who’d stopped an invasion from the Outsider world, before the peace treaty that’d allowed Outsiders to visit the human world. Yet that hadn’t been the last Outsider incident as of late, the last Outsider to suddenly snap like that…

Out of the corner of Nixe’s eye, she spotted the male librarian peeking around a bookcase away from the Outsider. His stare seemed even more distrusting than the one he’d given Nixe earlier. Or did he just think the plant-Outsider would get the books dirty? The thought of touching the books after that Outsider’s arm-vines had been on them, or even the thought of the Outsider trying to read with such appendages, brought an odd unease to Nixe’s stomach.

That nervousness was another reminder that it was time for her to get going. She took her backpack and the novel to the front desk, taking a path as far away from the plant-Outsider as she could. The female librarian, a woman who looked a touch too youthful for how white her hair was, greeted Nixe with a smile as she scanned the book. “Enjoy the book, dear. And remember, it’s due back in two weeks.”

“Thank you,” Nixe said with a nod. She rested her backpack on the counter to put the novel inside. As she unzipped her bag, the librarian said, “Huh…?”

“What?” asked Nixe, lifting her head. But the librarian wasn’t staring at her. She’d taken off her reading glasses, her stare fixed over Nixe’s shoulder. Nixe turned around, wondering what had piqued her curiosity.

Nixe could have sworn it was dark outside, yet it was brilliantly-bright beyond the front doors. It wasn’t like sunlight illuminating the day, or like a floodlight pointed into the library. The darkness of the night persisted beyond the hazy edges of the cloud of light.

Something crashed to the ground behind Nixe. “What is that?” the female librarian screamed out as the strange glow loomed closer to the doors.

Her scream provoked several more throughout the library, accompanied by the thuds of falling books, overturned chairs, and stomping feet upon the carpet. Nixe stood still…was it mere fascination, or was there something mesmerizing about that looming luminescence? It was like an early-morning fog, but instead of cloaking the sunlight, it shone as if it bore an even more intense radiance within. It casted its light over its surroundings, both outside the library and within—

—and it was coming closer, through the glass doors!

Nixe had been stunned by the sight at first, but now that she wanted to turn away, to run, her legs wouldn’t respond. Her body trembled, every muscle in her body begging to spring away—just like the day of the Eden High incident. The light growing closer finally let that trigger go in her mind, but all Nixe managed was a few clumsy, stumbling steps to her right towards the fire exit before she slipped on a fallen book and crashed to the floor.

Even without looking back, she knew the shining light was drawing closer from the floor brightening around her. As Nixe tried to scramble to her feet, a voice cried out ahead of her. “Here!”

She lifted her head—it was that plant-Outsider. While others ran for the exit, the Outsider swung their left “limb” of vines out. The tendrils extended several feet longer, lunging for Nixe. They coiled around her outstretched hand and arm, as everything around her was beginning to wash away into whiteness.

The vines tugged on her arm as she tried to push herself up with her other hand, but blinding light enveloped her vision, prompting her to throw up an arm before her eyes to no avail. That moment of hesitation led to the vines’ grip on her slipping away, just as she felt a strange pull all around her.

A sharp instinctive scream left her throat, echoing eeriely all around her.

And then that echo died, along with the last faint outlines and sounds of the world, leaving Nixe alone as she fell screaming through neverending light.


	2. Gravity

Nixe was still.

Everything around her was still.

She felt nothing. Heard nothing. Smelled nothing. Saw nothing, except for light. A blinding, overpowering white void of nothingness, so powerful that closing her eyes made no difference. Were her eyelids already closed? She couldn’t even tell.

She couldn’t even feel her own breath. When she tried to inhale, no air travelled down her throat, filling her lungs. And yet she wasn’t suffocating, starving for oxygen. When she tried to raise her arms, they felt like…they weren’t really there. Like gravity and weight no longer acted upon them. Holding her arm in front of her face didn’t shield her from the light; she couldn’t see even a vague outline of her limb.

Almost like she…she was…

Nixe tried to close her eyes again, unsure if they had already been shut. A whimper escaped her throat, a noise she always made before the crying started. The sound didn’t cross her ears like it should have, as if her mind had only imagined herself making the noise.

What had happened? Where was she? What was that light? Her mind begged for an explanation, any sort of reasoning, anything to tell her that this wasn’t…

Was it even the absolute nothingness, or just the overpowering silence that was getting to her? Which was worse? As soon as the thought, the desperation, of breaking that quiet came to mind, Nixe immediately cried out, “Hello? Hello?” Again, she didn’t hear herself as she would have normally. It didn’t sound like she was speaking aloud, like she was only talking to herself in her head.

But it was better than nothing at all. “Hello? Please! Where am I? What is this? Please! Someone!”

Her body felt like it was trembling—or Nixe felt like her body should have been trembling. Was she still one with her body? A terrible thought crossed her mind: of the radiant fog clearing from the library, leaving her and anyone else who’d been swallowed up along with her lying on the floor. Then they slowly rose, opening their eyes, with nothing but white soulless light shining from between their eyelids. Like some kind of possessed zombie in a horror movie…

…like magic. The kind of magic Outsiders had used eight years ago, to control innocent people, to turn them into monsters. That light must have been another attack, just like the one on Eden High or the recent one downtown. But why a library in the suburbs? Why such a simple place, why?

“ _Your distrust of the children of ether is misplaced._ ”

A pure feminine voice, echoing like the chime of a bell, filled the void. It both rang in Nixe’s ears, like a soft whisper close to her, while emanating from everywhere at once—even from deep within her body. Despite the circumstances, something about the harmonious tone of the voice soothed the unease within Nixe’s heart…if only a little.

That panic quickly resurfaced as silence once more filled the empty void. “Where am I?” Nixe shouted, trying to looking around as if she’d see whoever was speaking through the blinding light. “What happened to me? Please, let me go! I…I want to go home!” She couldn’t believe those words slipped from her lips, but it was true, for once. Anywhere was better than here, anything, even if it was her home—

“ _Please, be calm._ ”

Even with whatever it was about the voice that softened the anxiety in her racing heart, that specific request didn’t help much given what was going on. “I… Where are you? Who are you? Why are you doing this?”

No answer came. Nixe remained still, floating in this blinding nothingness. It had to be magic, didn’t it? The glowing fog that had enveloped her, taking her into this place… “Are…are you an Outsider?” Nixe cried out.

She expected no response, but one came after a few seconds. “ _Those whom you call ‘Outsiders’…_ ” Must like the eerie serenity that had spread through Nixe from the voice previously, a strange cold feeling washed over her from the inside-out as the word _Outsiders_ was pronounced. Distaste? Disgust? Without any doubt, Nixe knew the voice didn’t like that word. “ _They are not responsible for what is happening in your world._ ”

There was only one thing the voice could be referring to. “The Outsider attacks?”

That cold, uncomfortable sensation crossed through her without the voice speaking a single word, vanishing by the time it spoke again. “ _It is not only the children of ether who bring suffering upon others in your world. The children of anima are burdened just as they are._ ”

Children of ether? Of anima? Nixe figured that _children of ether_ referred to what humans knew as Outsiders, so who were the _children of anima_? Humans?

But whatever it meant, Nixe certainly considered herself innocent. “Just…please, let me go! Please! I just want to go home…” That whimper noise squeaked up from her lungs, and she didn’t care if she was about to burst into tears. “Let me go, please!” Maybe it was just her imagination, but she could have sworn she felt tears welling in her eyes.

Before the sobs could begin, the voice spoke. “ _You will be returned to your world, Nixe. If I could free you from the burden in your heart, the one brought upon you through the darkness in others’ hearts, I would._ ”

Nixe didn’t doubt the sincerity of the voice, that it intended to let her go unharmed. It had to be the same magical quality that made Nixe feel whatever emotions the voice spoke with, whether serenity or displeasure. But…

Her hands found her face, her fingers touching upon skin. She was still…there, here, wherever. Wiping the moisture from her eyes, Nixe said in a near-whisper voice, “My…burden? How do you…”

“ _All mortals carry their burdens, Nixe. It is the nature of all children of anima, and all children of ether. The darknesses that all bear will always bring suffering and pain to others. A world where that darkness is cast out of all hearts, where no shadow can foster further misery—that is my ambition, Nixe._ ”

With everything that had happened, Nixe couldn’t think clearly enough to reflect on everything the voice said. Still…casting darkness out of hearts, freeing people from burdens… “Y-you…you can’t do that for me?”

“ _Were you a mere child of anima,_ ” the voice said, “ _I would gladly do so, set your soul free from your darkness. But within you is a glint, a spark within your soul. It would interfere with your purification._ ”

A glint, a spark? Was that…unusual?

“ _I understand that you wish to know more. I am sure that what I desire is a world you would cherish. The time will come, Nixe, when we will meet again. When your glint shines, we will converse once more._ ”

Despite her desperation earlier, a flock of questions took flight through Nixe’s mind, curiosities she would have gladly chosen to stay longer to know. Each passing moment shrank her chance to ask any of them, so Nixe shouted out the first one she decided on—one she’d asked already, but still needed an answer for. “Who are you?”

Just as she believed she wouldn’t get an answer, something appeared within the blinding void. An outline of a being of some kind, shining with a brilliance that radiated through even the all-white emptiness. If this void was like staring into the sun, the light of this being would blind a human in an instant. Perhaps the vagueness of the figure was because of Nixe’s eyes being closed—she still wasn’t sure if they were or not—or simply the nature of the voice’s owner. But the answer came, the last words of the echoing voice from everywhere and anywhere, around her and within her.

“ _You may know of me as the Luminon._ ”

As silence settled once more after those words, the figure vanished back into the unending white. The void seemed to waver, resembling a glowing fog like the one that had flooded into the library. Nixe almost cried out—was it out of terror, or a genuine desire to stay a little longer, learn a little more?

Before Nixe could decide, a feeling like reverse gravity wrapped around her body, hurtling her in a direction she couldn’t comprehend. The pearly fog raced around her like a billowing twister, fading away into a greyish whirl.

And that grey faded into a different kind of nothingness.

= ~ = ~ = ~ = ~ =

When Nixe’s eyelids parted, the interior of the library greeted her vision.

Her cheek brushed against the rough burgundy carpet. Her hands managed to plant themselves face-down next to her, and her arms exerted enough effort to push her body off of the ground. Welling what little strength that it seemed lingered in her body, Nixe grunted as she lifted herself into a sitting position. It was like having had an out-of-body experience, and her soul wasn’t quite yet reconnected with her physical self.

The only light upon the library floor came from the streetlights outside, shining through the windows and glass doors. From what she could see of the sky, and the shadowy neighbourhood beneath, the sun had set by now—how late was it?

Nixe looked around. No one else was here. No one else was lying on the ground, slowly rousing from unconsciousness. The only sound in the air was the humming of cars driving past the library—the usual background noise of the suburbs.

She was back.

Had that all really happened? Her head felt so fuzzy, like the times she’d tried taking a nap during the day only to wake up disoriented and confused an hour later. Maybe this was still a dream. Perhaps the oddest nightmare she’d ever had, but still…

As Nixe stood up, she spotted a book on the floor. _Lunal Harvest_. The bookmark poked out from the top, surely where Nixe had left off before she’d decided to leave…before that cloud of light…

For a moment, her lungs and heart turned to ice.

She didn’t want to be here.

Nixe grabbed her backpack and bolted for the front doors. They were unlocked, or at least not locked from the inside, and Nixe emerged into the cool evening air. Her hooded sweater and jeans were enough to keep her warm on this mid-autumn night, yet Nixe still shivered.

Police tape surrounded the library grounds. She started for the sidewalk—but what if someone spotted her coming out of the library? Would they think she’d broken in? Would they believe what had really happened to her?

Remembering the back path from the library, Nixe headed away from the street and down the lamp-lit path. She would have ran home as fast as she could, but she felt much too out of breath for anything beyond a brisk walk.

= ~ = ~ = ~ = ~ =

The few pedestrians out and about—however late it was; Nixe didn’t bother checking her tablet for the time—glanced in her direction as she hurried home. None of them seemed suspicious of her, but surely they’d heard about what had happened at the library. Did they know about the girl who’d been swallowed up by the light—and would they have any reason to suspect it was her?

The single-floor white bungalow with nothing decorating the lawn soon came into view, a home that had seemed plainer and plainer as the years went by. Yet Nixe couldn’t believe how relieved she was to be home. She tried the doorknob, opening the door with ease and locking it behind her. Only the hallway light was on, half-illuminating the living room where her mother would be watching whatever crime drama she was in the mood for.

As Nixe took off her shoes, her mother called, “Nixe!”

Nixe froze. There wasn’t a hint of concern to her mother’s voice, and Nixe knew why. That gratitude to simply be home vanished as she entered the living room. There wasn’t any tone of anger or upset to her mother’s voice either; that, Nixe figured, had to do mostly with the two empty beer bottles on the coffee table.

“Nixe,” her mother said, “what were you doing out so late?”

Did Nixe tell her the truth? Would her mom even believe such a story? That she’d been swallowed up by some glowing fog at the library, had spoken with some being in a dimension of shining light?

Her mother’s eyebrow rose.

“Oh…” Nixe lowered her head. “I was…at the library reading. I guess I lost track of time. Sorry.”

“Hm.” Her mom’s eyes returned to the television. “Dinner’s in the fridge.”

“Thank you,” Nixe squeaked, slipping out of the living room midway through her sentence.

The faint aroma of her mom’s garlic-heavy mashed potatoes lingered in the kitchen. The pot was soaking in the sink, but the frying pan had been left on the stove, grease and all. On any other night, Nixe would have dreaded her mom’s dry pork chops, but tonight she just took her plate from the fridge and hurried to her room.

Her bedroom was a tiny, cramped room, but more than enough for her, her bed, a desk covered with knick-knacks, and a small dresser/bookcase nestled between her bed and the closet. Closing the door after she entered, Nixe set her plate down on the table, let her backpack fall off of her shoulder, then slumped down against the side of her bed. Her stomach somehow grumbled for food, after everything that had happened.

Had it all been real? Maybe she hadn’t been sucked into some void of light. Maybe it’d just been an hallucination or something. But wouldn’t the police have found her in the library? Why would they have left her there? How long had she even been in that place? She checked the clock on her dresser, her stomach twisting at the time: nearly 8:30! Had she been in that place for hours?

If it hadn’t been real, someone would have found her in the library during that time. So it had to have been another world, inhabited by someone—something—that called herself the Luminon. Some kind of magical god? Perhaps, given the realm of blinding light her mortal eyes couldn’t see through. Was that place some kind of heavenly world? The Luminon had spoken about darkness, burdens, and…

…what had she said about Nixe? Something about a spark? A glint?

Nixe’s stomach twisted, both out of nervousness and hunger. She settled herself in her chair, staring at her cold dinner, both longing to eat and not quite wanting to. Whatever the Luminon meant by _glint_ …whatever it was, it made Nixe no ordinary “child of anima”. Was that what the Luminon had said?

She began to cut into her pork chop, but as something sparked in her mind, her knife and fork slipped from her fingers.

Her first assumption about that cloud of light had been another Outsider attack. Eden High had been the first, but soon more reports came of Outsiders going berserk, causing chaos and destruction with their powers. The ones who were said to have stopped them weren’t other Outsiders, but girls in strange costumes, bearing magical powers. The news referred to them with the same word that the ones who’d fought the Outsider invasion eight years ago had been called: heroines.

But the Outsiders had a different word for the heroines. One Nixe had heard a few times on the news, before the Eden High incident. They called the heroines…

…Glints.

She couldn’t mistake the feeling in her stomach with hunger. Nixe almost collapsed out of her chair, but kept herself steady, if only barely. Her head shook without even thinking about it, as her lips mouthed the words “Oh my god.”

It couldn’t be…

 _She_ couldn’t be.

“Oh my god…”


	3. Cage

Nixe had no idea how she managed to doze off that night, if only for a few hours. When it was finally bright enough for her to see the time on her clock, it felt like she hadn’t slept a wink.

Had she dreamed about what had happened, flashing back to that blinding-white void in those brief moments of sleep? Or had she been thinking about it in-between winks, unable to distract herself enough for a good night’s rest? Either way, it weighed upon her mind as she pulled herself out of bed, like an albatross around her neck.

Still dressed in her white hoodie and blue jeans from the night before, Nixe dragged herself before the bathroom mirror. Just the same pale complexion, chin-length bob-cut of grey-brown she’d inherited from her dad, and the greyish eyes from her mom’s side of the family. There was nothing unusual about her.

At least, from what she could see.

Her stomach grumbled, but breakfast could wait. And her mother might have nodded off on the couch; a rare occurrence, but Nixe wouldn’t want to disturb her. She returned to her room, checking her backpack with a hint of confusion until she realized she must have left _Lunal Harvest_ at the library. The librarian had scanned it, it was out in her name…there’d be a record of her standing right there when that glowing fog appeared.

Someone must have seen it. Someone would know she’d been enveloped in that light, disappeared into it. The cameras in the library would have caught it, and anyone could have been recording it with their phone. And they’d just need to check the records to know that girl had been Nixe Fulton of 4445 Talbot Drive.

What would people believe had happened to her?

Nixe took out her tablet. Her dad always insisted that Garden City’s public wi-fi network was a scheme to track people’s online activities, but he still didn’t bother with a private connection. A quick search brought up a Celsius News Online headline: _Unexplained magical phenomenom leads to closure of Meadow public library_.

Dismissing the auto-play video, Nixe scanned the article. Despite panic in the neighbourhood, there was no damage to the library and no reports of anyone harmed or missing. That…that couldn’t have been right. Someone _had_ to have seen her being consumed by that cloud of light—like that Outsider who’d tried to save them! Yet there wasn’t a single mention of Outsiders in the article.

She thought of searching for articles of the other incidents, the other recent Outsider attacks. But thinking of her dad’s distrust worried her about having such a search history. She was just a teenager, after all—an ordinary girl who’d gotten caught up in something bizarre. Whatever that being was, the Luminon, it must have been mistaken…

…she wasn’t convincing herself.

Her bedroom door squeaked open, and Nixe nearly jumped in surprise.

“Good morning, Nixe.”

Steadying herself, Nixe turned away and said, “Oh…morning, Mom!”

Nixe’s mother raised an eyebrow. Her dark-brown hair was tucked beneath a beige nightcap. The old sweater she wore with her pyjama bottoms was probably one of Nixe’s father’s. This early in the morning, the dozy look on her face had to be one of sleepiness rather than intoxication, though the period between the two sometimes didn’t last long. “What are you looking up this early?” she asked, in a tone that thankfully didn’t sound too suspicious.

Shaking her head, Nixe said, “It’s nothing, really. Just checking something for school. You startled me, that’s all.”

Her mom glanced to her desk. “Please put your plate in the kitchen when you’re finished dinner, Nixe.”

“Oh. Sorry, Mom.”

With a small nod, Nixe’s mom closed the bedroom door, leaving it ajar.

Her stomach now begged for satiation, or perhaps that was nervousness adding to it. It was probably best to put all of this out of mind. What had the Luminon said? That they would speak again…when her “glint” shined? Was that it?

So all she had to do was not use magic, and she’d never hear from the Luminon again? She’d managed that well enough so far in her sixteen years of life.

= ~ = ~ = ~ = ~ =

Nixe’s lunch was ready for her on Monday morning, made by her the night before. It wasn’t as if her mom didn’t care to; she’d done so for years, until Nixe had taken over halfway through eighth grade. Her mom’s sandwiches had always been fine, though Nixe preferred to tear out the rubbery bits from the cheap sliced chicken.

When her alarm went off at six o’clock, Nixe dressed herself in the outfit she’d chosen the night before: a long-sleeved white blouse and beige slacks, along with her white spring jacket. A little light for the autumn weather, according to her tablet, but she’d be inside the bus and school for most of the day anyway.

As she prepared to leave, Nixe froze up while putting on her second shoe. All the other days she’d left for Amaryllis High School, she’d never hesitated, even the first day she had to take a bus halfway across the city. But what if something happened downtown? Another attack, or even the Luminon trying to reach her?

“Lightning won’t strike the same person twice…” Nixe whispered to herself as she slipped on her shoe.

= ~ = ~ = ~ = ~ =

Nixe stared out of the bus window during the entire trip, watching the suburban scenery give way to downtown architecture. Most of the city had the same uniformity, countless tall buildings with clean light-coloured walls and polished windows. A rare few had a hint of artistic flair, like engraved images or a cultural aesthetic to government buildings. It was so much busier downtown, so much more traffic on the road and sidewalks, and even monorail tracks above the streets. Somedays, she wished she could just wander around the city, take in the sights, maybe visit the Museum of Nature again. The last time had been a field trip in Grade 8; Nixe had nearly gotten separated from the rest of the class while exploring the avian exhibits.

Her recollections distracted her until the bus pulled into the semi-circle lane in front of Amaryllis High. Once most of the other students had disembarked, Nixe walked off of the bus into the November chill. The entrance of Amaryllis High School was beneath decorative letters naming the building, upon a two-storey wall of curved glass window that let the morning sunlight illuminate the main hall. The two wings of the school were built from creamy-yellow brick, the corners curved in contrast to the taller angular buildings near the school. Eden High was a much plainer building; sometimes Nixe wondered why a high school _needed_ to look so fancy.

She had been assigned a locker at Amaryllis High, to share with another student; Nixe didn’t want the hassle, so she trudged up to her English class with her heavy backpack. She was one of the first students to arrive, and so she found her seat and took out the novel they were reading for their lessons.

Only once the first bell of the day rang did students begin to fill the room. The teacher, Mrs. Jessum, waited until after the announcements to begin. “Good morning, students. I’d assigned Chapter 17 as last night’s reading; I trust that everyone is caught up?”

Nixe’s eyes remained on the book. She’d already read through the whole novel, and had planned to reread Chapter 17 last night, but…yesterday’s events had distracted her from that.

“Today,” Mrs. Jessum continued, “we’ll be splitting into groups to discuss the themes and symbolism of the story. I’ll be assigning themes to each group to talk about, then to share their conclusions at the end of class. Join up in groups of four with your nearby classmates!”

Thankfully, that meant the choice wasn’t up to someone else to finally ask Nixe to join their group. She pushed her desk closer to the nearest three students, a boy named Connor and two girls, Amea and Parker.

When Mrs. Jessum approached their group, she said, “Your theme will be water.” It wasn’t what Nixe would have hoped to get, but she figured there was worse.

Low chatter filled the classroom, while Nixe kept to herself browsing through the chapter. She had a general idea of what water represented in the story, but couldn’t recall where in particular those scenes were.

“So,” said Amea, a black-haired girl, “you guys hear about what happened downtown?”

Nixe’s head perked up. Had there been another Outsider incident?

“Nothing I’ve heard about,” Connor replied, shaking his head.

“Well, this busker was playing music when some purse-snatcher ran by him. The guy says to the thief, ‘Buddy, the least you can do is tip!’ And that actually got the guy to pause for a moment, and someone else grabbed the purse back from him!”

Connor chuckled; Nixe returned her eyes to the book. They started talking about after-school plans, a topic Nixe had no interest in participating in. Classwork, as dull as it was, was far more welcome in her mind.

Parker’s voice snapped her out of her reading. “Since you’re the only one reading, Nixe,” she said, “what are you coming up with?”

“I’ve already got water as a source of life, of cleansing,” Amea added.

There was a degree of that, Nixe thought, but it wasn’t all positive. “Perhaps there’s the theme of erosion as well…that statue in the river, worn away by the water.”

“Sounds good to me,” Amea replied. “Let’s find us some quotes.”

Nixe returned her attention to the text, while the other three returned their discussion to non-class topics. She jotted down quotes from the chapter, glancing to the others. Connor didn’t even have his book open. “So Parker,” asked Amea, “were you going to come with us to the theater tonight?”

Parker shook her head. “Nah. My mom’s been transferred to the night shift, so I don’t want to be out late, making her worry about me.”

“Gotta be scary,” said Amea, “her being a cop with all this Outsider stuff going down.” Nixe forced her eyes back to her book.

Shrugging, Parker replied, “What about you guys? Any fun plans?”

Nixe tried her best to appear utterly consumed by her reading, but still Parker nudged her and asked, “You doing anything interesting, Nixe? Or are you going to be finishing all of our classwork?”

Her first instinct was to shake her head, even if she knew Parker’s comment was only a joke. “N-no,” she quickly spoke, “just going to…do some reading.”

“I don’t get how you’re so into this book. There’s a reason this sort of writing style went out of fashion sixty years ago.”

Nixe didn’t reply. She hadn’t found the assigned novel _that_ boring, but even the tale of a struggling family in poverty was a welcome escape sometimes. Any sort of classwork or even homework was a good excuse to put up a wall between herself and reality, between herself and other students cheerfully discussing the sort of things she’d never disclose herself, between herself and her family at its worst.

Her attention returned to the novel, and the other three returned to their chat.

= ~ = ~ = ~ = ~ =

The rest of Nixe’s classes, to her comfort, didn’t involve any group work. Chemistry class was just the teacher doing demonstrations, while Math and History were spent in near-silence answering textbook questions.

When the final bell finally rang, Nixe left History class and headed outside, deciding to wait alone in the cold rather than inside the crowded main hall. As she zipped up her jacket, she gazed over to the vibrant rose-coloured walls of what looked like a café across the nearby intersection. Images of cutesy animals adorned the windows, kitties and puppies and the like. What kind of place was it? What treats did they serve? Probably stuff far more interesting than what the Fireside had to offer.

Her bus then pulled into the lane in front of her, blocking off her view of the place. The bus ride was about half an hour back to the suburbs…how far would that be? A few dozen kilometers? She had some spare change on her, enough for bus fare, but what routes would take her back home? She didn’t have her tablet to look that up. And that cute-looking café was probably a pricey place, too much for what she had on her. Maybe there was a cheaper option around, but how would she find it?

A heavy sigh left Nixe’s chest as she climbed the steps of the bus and took a window seat in the middle of the bus. While she waited for the bus to fill, she started out the window to Amaryllis High. A few birds—geese, it looked like—perched upon one of the corners of the school’s left wing. They stared down upon the herd of teenagers, maybe waiting for them to depart so they could feast on dropped snacks. One flew off all of a sudden, without any apparent noise or sight that prompted it to take off. Maybe it just wanted to fly.

If Nixe could fly, she could explore downtown at her leisure, take in all the sights, experience all kinds of new things. Then she could soar on home, her mom none the wiser.

“Excuse me,” asked a girl’s voice, “do you mind if I sit here?” Nixe shrugged, not taking her eyes away from the group of birds as she moved her backpack into her lap.

It wasn’t as if she’d never thought of flying away, running away from home. She could have taken a bunch of food, her blankets and tablet as well. Her mom wouldn’t think twice about Nixe saying she was just going to the library or the store. But the reality of it was obvious: she didn’t have friends to stay with, money to pay for food or shelter. She’d end up cold and starving and afraid in no time. All the fantasies of a life without everything in her life were just that: fantasies.

The bus finally started away from Amaryllis High. Back home, back to her birdcage. One with an open window, one she wished she could fly out of at any time, yet she knew she had to return to her perch. To tweet and sing as if nothing at all was wrong.

It brought to mind the Luminon’s words. About her burdens…

Nixe shut her eyes and shut out the noise of student chatter and traffic. What if she _was_ magical? What would that change in her life? Could it give her the power to fly free from the birdcage, to not have to—

A strange warmth filled Nixe’s chest—no, it _rose_ like hot air, from somewhere deeper than her chest, deeper than even her heart—

A gasp squeaked out of Nixe’s throat. Her body stiffened, her eyes sprang wide open. What in the world was that? She’d never felt anything like that before in her life. Was something wrong with her, or…

A hand touched Nixe’s shoulder. “Hey, are you okay?”

Nixe turned to the girl sitting next to her, a pale-blonde girl with her long locks in a braid over her shoulder. Nixe didn’t recognize the girl, though she could have been in all of her classes both at Eden High and Amaryllis High, for all Nixe knew.

“I…I’m fine,” Nixe quickly said with a shake of her head. “Just a little stomach upset, that’s all.”

The girl next to her said nothing more, but Nixe still felt a lingering heat inside of her core. It reminded her of acid reflux, oddly enough, but instead of unpleasant stinging, the feeling was…curious.

She didn’t know what it was…and yet knew instantly what it had to be.

For the rest of the ride home, Nixe kept her eyes fixed on the back of the seat in front of her, forcing herself to think about things that were not birds or cages.

Or magic.


	4. Change

On the way to school, Nixe didn’t even dare to glance out of the bus window, just in case her imagination was sparked by a bird flying by or resting in a tree. What would happen if she let that magical feeling happen again? Would she levitate out of her bus seat? Sprout a pair of wings mid-class? After Eden High, what kind of panic would that cause?

Trying not to think about it only made her mind linger on it throughout her classes. It was just the same monotony, trudging through classes she didn’t care about. Her dad had egged her into taking Chemistry, insisting it’d help her get a good job. As much as she’d wanted to ask what good jobs _he’d_ had that’d required Chemistry, she’d kept her silence. At least he was thinking of her future; she still had no idea where she was going, no plans for after high school.

When the school day finally ended and Nixe headed outside to await the bus, another longing to explore downtown struck her. This time, she didn’t dare entertain the fancy for longer than a few seconds. Still, her stare remained on the cute café down the street, on the little birdies adorning the windows.

Her bus rolled up in front of her. Her birdcage to take her back to the roost, when all she wanted was to fly free—

A warm feeling crept up inside of her, but this time she wasn’t sure if it was her imagination or not. Shaking her head, Nixe scattered those thoughts like a flock of birds, then headed onto her bus.

= ~ = ~ = ~ = ~ =

She didn’t hesitate at her front door today. As Nixe stepped into her home, she pondered how she’d pass the time this evening. Homework first, of course, then perhaps some music. The dishes would need to be done after supper—

“Nixe!”

Her gaze snapped up from her half-untied shoes. “One second, Mom!”

She hurried into the living room, where her mother sat in her usual spot on the couch, the usual sitcom playing on the TV, the usual beer bottles collecting on the coffee table. “What is it, Mom?” Nixe asked.

“The library called.”

The library? Surely it had to do with that night, what had happened there, what had happened to _her_ —

“Don’t get spooked,” her mom said, giving an amused smile. “They said you’d left some book there, that they’d keep it for you if you wanted to get it. I said I didn’t know, so they asked me to tell you to either go pick it up or let them know if you’re not interested in it anymore.”

They…hadn’t mentioned what had happened that evening? _How?_ Surely they knew any book left behind that night would have been from someone fleeing for their life? What if someone recognized her as the girl who hadn’t escaped from the blinding light? Wouldn’t they think something had happened to her—like all of those Outsiders who went crazy?

Her mother was still staring, so Nixe forced out a response. “Oh well, I guess I’ll go pick it up after supper. M-must have forgotten to put it in my backpack on Friday.”

“Alright.” Nixe’s mom returned her focus to the television. “We’re having chicken and roast potatoes. You can get that ready for your mom, right?”

She could, and usually she didn’t mind, yet today the request deflated her a little inside. “Sure, of course.”

After a few seconds of waiting for a mere “Thank you”, Nixe headed to her bedroom. The dread of returning to the library after what’d happened was one thing, but having the rest of her day suddenly vanish—not that she had any special plans tonight—felt like having her wings clipped, her feet tied to the perch…

She froze for a moment. No, she couldn’t think about that. Couldn’t let those images cross her mind.

= ~ = ~ = ~ = ~ =

After supper and a bit of homework, Nixe headed for the library. Only a golden corona lingered past the tall buildings on the skyline. Her father would have never tolerated her going out alone after dark. Her mom never thought twice about it.

She’d expected to see some lingering trace of the incident—police tape, some warning, or even damage to the building itself. Yet Meadow Public Library looked just the same as it always did. The lights were on, cars were parked outside, and people were visible through the windows. It was like nothing had even happened at all.

Though her pace slowed at first on the way to the entrance, Nixe forced herself onward through the front doors, her stomach sinking as she approached the counter. The man behind the desk was one of the librarians who’d been working that night—the one who’d seemed suspicious of that plant-Outsider. “Welcome,” he said. “What may I help you with?”

Did he not remember her from that night? Swallowing her anxiety, Nixe pulled out her library card. “I’m Nixe Fulton…my mom received a call from the library…

The man put his finger to his lips for a moment. “Oh yes! When we reopened, we found this book on the floor. Were you…”

His eyes narrowed for a second, and Nixe’s heart skipped a beat. “You were here that night, weren’t you? When that light was outside…”

Nixe nodded, while keeping every other part of her body still.

“Well, thank goodness you’re alright,” the librarian said, resting his chin in his hand and closing his eyes. “When people started screaming, I hurried for the fire exit, tried to get out everyone I could. Someone said that someone got caught in that light, but…I’d checked the news all weekend, if there was any word of anyone missing after Friday night…”

What if anyone here would recognize her as that person who’d been swallowed up by that cloud of light? Would they think she would go crazy, like those Outsiders she’d heard about? “Y-yeah, I’d better get home. My mom might be worried about me staying out too long.” Hopefully her excuse wasn’t obvious on her face. “Thanks for holding onto the book.”

The librarian reached underneath the counter and handed over _Lunal Harvest_. “You’re welcome. I’m glad you’re safe. I just wonder what happened with that Outsider who was here that night.”

“The…the plant-like one?”

The librarian nodded. “I wonder what they were doing here that night. I can’t remember ever seeing an Outsider in here before. I know they can speak our language, but can they read?”

Surely they had to be able to, if there had been the Outsiders at Eden High studying along with human students. “I hope they’re alright,” Nixe said.

Shrugging, the librarian replied, “Yeah…‘alright’. I mentioned them to the police, what I could remember about them anyway. One of the cops said there’s always Outsiders around other incidents like this one.”

Other incidents? Nixe hadn’t heard of anything similar happening in the city. Not even the article she’d read about what had happened here mentioned anything of the sort. Had the Luminon been seeking out others like her, those who supposedly had magical powers?

The longer Nixe stayed here, either talking to the librarian or saying nothing at all, the more she worried she’d slip up or give some hint to make him suspicious. “Well, thank you,” she said, putting the novel in her jacket’s inner pocket. “I’ll make sure to return it on time.”

“That’s all I can ask for in this crazy city of ours,” the librarian said with a smile. “Have a good night.”

Nixe headed for the door, but the thought of dishes and Math homework slowed her steps. Even with the November chill and the dread of the aftermath here, getting out of the house was still some small respite. Now that it was time to head back home, a weary resignation crept over her once more. She probably wouldn’t have time to read _Lunal Harvest_ before bed, even.

She forced herself towards the exit, towards home…the bird flying back to its cage.

That warmth from a place deeper within her than she ever knew existed flared up again, freezing her in her tracks.

“Is there something else I can help you with, Miss Fulton?” the librarian asked behind her.

“Oh, it’s nothing,” Nixe quickly replied, without glancing over her shoulder. “Actually, maybe I will check for another book…”

She hurried away from the front desk, past other folks taking books from the shelves and a young woman returning books to their proper places. The way the librarian had spoken of the plant-person Outsider…did he think that Outsider was responsible? Just because they were an Outsider? Nixe couldn’t recall much talk about them our years ago, when they were first welcomed to Garden City, but she couldn’t think of average folks expressing suspicion of them before the present. Except for her dad, but he said a lot of stuff about all kinds of folks.

At the tables near the back of the library, Nixe perused her surroundings. But for what? Another book? Or just a place she could be “alone”, to think things through? To reflect upon her own possible secret?

Why was she afraid of it, anyway? Of the idea of magic? Even if it wouldn’t change anything, even if she had to keep it a secret…why not at least _try_? To see its potential? To know for certain if it _was_ magic, rather than just her imagination?

But she couldn’t do it in public, no. And home was just as bad an option—what if her mother walked in at the wrong moment? She’d probably forget by the morning, but still…

Her eyes wandered over to the ladies’ room. It was a small bathroom for one, with a single toilet and a lock on the door. Was she really going to try to discover magic in a bathroom?

It was the only “safe” hiding-spot Nixe could think of, so she headed in, locking the door behind her. The interior was dimly-lit by a single bulb in the ceiling, making the beige walls and floors look uglier than they really were. She checked for cameras, but saw none—understandable, she supposed, given the need for privacy. But what if she still drew attention to herself somehow, caused another panic in the library, with what had happened last week?

She’d already taken this step, though. And Nixe recalled the Luminon’s words, that they would meet again when her “glint” shone. Was she curious enough to take the Luminon up on that? Or would it be best if she ignored what they’d said, dismissed the entire idea of her having magic, kept herself out of everything and anything to do with magic and Outsiders and what was going on now?

But would her chance at magic would eventually slip away forever?

She gazed at herself in the mirror at the reflection of wide-eyed, plain-dressed, nervous Nixe Fulton staring back. A girl who didn’t know what she was doing with her life. A girl who had no idea what her future held. A girl who often didn’t even want to go home, where she should have felt safest and warmest.

A girl who didn’t know how to change any of that as the girl in the mirror before her.

Before she could start tearing up at such thoughts, Nixe closed her eyes and took a deep breath. In her mind, in her heart, she pictured a birdcage—a bit rusted, a bit squeaky, but intact aside from the open door.

The warmth inside of her kindled like a candle.

A small white bird sat upon the perch, facing the open door. A white dove. Nixe held her breath now, her hands upon her chest, over that warmth.

Raising its wings, the white bird took flight, soaring through the open door of the cage. Nixe drew her hands away, swinging her arms upwards to her sides, like they were the wings of the white dove.

Only when white light shone through her eyelids did Nixe realize her feet were no longer on the ground. She opened her eyes with a gasp, only for the radiance to be no less blinding. The feeling of weightlessness…for a moment, Nixe thought she’d been pulled back into the Luminon’s domain.

The warmth inside of her grew stronger, brighter, until it burst forth from that place deeper than her physical heart like a flock of birds all taking flight at once. The first pulses washed over her arms, leaving a sensation of feathers brushing over her hands and between her fingers. The next ones enveloped her legs, like wings beating against her ankles and feet. The weight of her jacket and jeans and even her shoes vanished from her body, despite the feeling of clothing upon her skin. Another pulse brushed over her face and head, ruffling through her hair like a gust of wind and gently brushing around her eyes, forming a band of light around her vision that stood out from the rest of the pure white that radiated around her.

…no, not _around_. From _within_.

The light faded as Nixe’s feet touched down upon the floor, not in her well-worn sneakers but in sturdy footwear with slight heels that felt all but weightless. When all she could see behind her eyelids was darkness, Nixe opened her eyes to the mirror before her.

Framed by the washroom background, as dreary as it’d been all along, was… _someone_. They didn’t have her grey-brown hair, but a head of white hair, adorned with feathers. No… She stepped closer, the person in the mirror drawing nearer in turn. Their hair was formed entirely _of_ feathers! Nixe raised a hand, and so did the person in the mirror—a hand clad in a white glove, with tufts of down around their wrist…

…just like the hand at the edge of Nixe’s vision, the hand that grazed her own hair, bringing the white feathertips into her view.

She recoiled, but only slightly. Her eyes grew wide—not her dull hazel eyes, but greyish eyes framed by a white mask shaped like a pair of outstretched wings. How did it stay in place? Nixe didn’t see any strings, and didn’t even feel the mask upon her face.

Her eyes lowered to the white garment she now wore, to the shoulders shaped like wings curled around her and the skirt that resembled oversized feathers layered over each other. She turned her body a little to the right, and saw her reflection’s eyes widen the moment the wings upon her shoulderblades came into view. Were they merely for decoration? Could she fly with them? She lifted one foot, looked down to the white boots upon her feet, adorned with small wings on the outsides of her ankles.

Her gaze rose back to the reflection, to the girl who was most definitely not Nixe Fulton. She looked nothing like Nixe Fulton. Not the clothes, not the hair, not the eyes…not the fascination in her stare, not how her parted lips were curled upwards. Even when her mouth closed, that smile remained—if anything, it grew even wider. Words…words couldn’t describe her wonder. She wanted to know what she was capable of. What she could do. She felt like bursting out of the washroom, running out of the library, like—

…what was she thinking? Who knew if she _was_? How did she know this wasn’t some hallucination, that she hadn’t completely lost her mind? What if all of this was just her going off the deep end, losing all touch with reality?

Nixe stepped closer to the counter. So did the girl in the mirror. Nixe shook her head, and the reflection’s feather-hair ruffled with the motion. She _felt_ the feathers brushing against her skin, against each other. She even waved her right hand, her reflection matching with its left.

Her gloved hand froze once more before her face, her eyes lowering away from the mirror. “This _is_ real,” Nixe whispered to herself, her reflection stepping back in turn with her. “This is real!”

Three rapid knocks upon the washroom door made Nixe’s heart jump thrice in her chest. “Excuse me?” called a female voice. “Is the washroom occupied?”

Nixe drew away from the door. She couldn’t find the words, as simple—and truthful—as the answer would be. But would whoever was outside leave, or just stay there? What if Nixe couldn’t make herself go back to normal? She couldn’t just walk out of the washroom like this, standing out like a swan among seagulls!

As she struggled to squawk out a single word, _something_ filled the air behind her. It cast a brilliant glow upon the walls and door, but Nixe had realized its presence before she’d noticed the light. She’d felt it, like a tingle up her spine.

Behind her was a luminescent fog, from where the toilet stall was. That cloud of light was just like the one that had appeared on Friday night, yet this time it wasn’t steadily expanding towards her.

It wasn’t here to steal her away.

It was an invitation.

More knocks sounded upon the door. “Hello?”

She just couldn’t let herself be seen like this. Nixe closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and threw herself into the cloud of light. Where there should have been floor was instead blinding nothingness that Nixe sank into, away from her world.


	5. Awakening

Nixe drifted through the white void, the radiant light shining through her eyelids. She felt just as weightless as before, but this time instead of complete sensory deprivation, she could feel…currents washing around and over her body. Like warm gusts coming from every direction at once, all at the same time. Nixe tried to flap the wings upon her back, to propel herself forward. She didn’t feel them move, and couldn’t tell if she was moving anywhere in this void anyway.

“ _Nixe._ ”

The melodious voice of the Luminon echoed all around her, throughout her. “Luminon?” Nixe said, her own voice ringing in her ears.

“ _Open your eyes, Nixe. Open your eyes and see before you._ ”

Part of Nixe didn’t expect the visage before her closed eyes to change; everything had been nothing but blinding white the last time. But that had been her normal self, her normal eyes. Would everything be different with—

She opened her eyes, and her gasp pealed like a bell. A landscape revealed itself before her, an idyllic plain…yet one of a world clearly not her own. The sky was a silvery shade, the long stalks of grass before her a light-gold. Every surface bore a pearlescent luminescence, as if purity emanated from every surface. Bronze-barked trees were scattered before her, but rather than foliage, they were topped with cloud-like tufts that seemed to expand forever and yet not blot out the sky.

As if guided by mere thought, Nixe’s feet touched down upon the ground. Her eyes took in the place before her; by the time she spoke, she had no idea how long she’d been just staring. “This is…w-what is this place? The Outsider world?”

“ _A world beyond your world,_ ” the Luminon spoke, “ _and that of the children of ether._ ” Was it Nixe’s imagination, or did the glow coming from everything seem to pulse along with the Luminon’s words? “ _A sanctuary untouched by the darkness within the hearts of mortals. You may call it Solis._ ”

Hadn’t the Luminon spoken of something like that in their previous meeting? “What do you mean, darkness in people’s hearts? Hatred? Evil?” The word _sin_ lingered on the tip of her tongue—no surprise, given her heavenly surroundings.

A few moments passed, as if the Luminon was pondering their response. Where were they, exactly? As Nixe looked around, the voice answered. “ _All hearts are burdened by selfish desires, feelings driven by fear and distrust. Surely you know such of your own people._ ”

Of course Nixe knew such…but how did the Luminon know? How did it know her name in the first place? “Well…there’s good people out there, too…”

“ _Are their hearts truly free of darkness? Are they ever hindered by the cruelty and apathy of others? Might they hold good intentions that are sullied by their own biases and beliefs? As long as this darkness exists, the potential of both the children of anima and ether will never be realized. Suffering will continue to exist, passed down from one to another, from generation to generation._ ”

Nixe bit her lip, gazing down to the grass by her feet. “The…the Outsiders too?”

A cold, terrible feeling sank into her very being, a sensation of unease and displeasure. Over that word— _Outsiders_.

“ _Yes, Nixe. Do you not recall the children of ether who attacked your world and people not long ago?_ ” Nixe nodded, though her eight-year-old self had understood little about what was going on then. “ _They were led by one who wished to impose her own ideals upon the children of anima, against their will, too blinded by her own convictions to consider the harm she caused. Many of those she chose to carry out her ambitions viewed the children of anima with contempt, as your people might consider lesser creatures. Do you know how common it is for the children of ether to view your kind with pity and confusion, unable to set aside their own suppositions?_ ”

Was that all because humans didn’t have magic? Nixe had never really thought about it much—she never saw Outsiders often in the suburbs. But to a being who came from a world where magic was something all could use, a law of nature just like gravity, what did they think of a people who lived without it?

Her thoughts returned to the present, to the current crisis. “But the—the ones…” She’d almost said _Outsiders_ again, but stopped herself. She didn’t want to feel that sensation of disgust again. “The ones who are going crazy in Garden City, attacking people…why is this happening now?”

“ _Before you may understand, you must see more. You must hear more. Will you let me show you, Nixe?_ ”

She’d already chosen to delve into that cloud of light. It wasn’t as if she knew how to go back to her own world anyway. “Yes, I will.”

The landscape before her blurred for a few moments. When it came back into focus, several shimmering figures had appeared throughout the vista. Most of them seemed humanoid, formed of white light yet still strangely contrasted against the background of this world. These figures sat beneath trees, walked with each other—one pair even held hands with each other. Though Nixe couldn’t make out much detail on most of them, one glowing silhouette stood out from the rest. Their upper body was humanoid, but they bore a horse-like lower body, like a centaur from human mythology—or…

“That one,” Nixe said, staring at the inhuman figure. How could she tell which of the others were human, based on their glowing silhouettes? But the centaur-like one, she recognized—she drew a blank on their names, but knew they were one of the more common in Garden City. “They’re an Outsider.” Almost immediately, that eerie displeasure sank into her being.

“ _Several children of ether now reside here in Solis. They are no less burdened than the children of anima._ ”

The centaur-Outsider stood with a group of humanoid figures, as if they were friends in conversation. Most of the kids at Eden High had treated the Outsider students as…well, outsiders…before the incident. Had Nixe herself ever spoken to one of them? It wasn’t as if she talked to her fellow humans at school all that often, but it’d felt bizarre just to be in the same classroom as an Outsider…”

“ _What you see before you are souls, freed from their inner darkness, existing in peace and tranquility._ ”

“Souls?” If they had been separated from their bodies…” Are they…d-dead?”

“ _No. Their vessels remain in your world, inhabited by the darkness that once weighed upon them. In time, they will be able to return to your world, to make your home an inspiration for others to follow. But they cannot become part of your world again yet._ ”

“Why not?”

“ _They do not hold distrust or suspicion in their hearts. They would not expect to be misled or abused by those with ill intentions or weak wills. They would only continue to suffer from the cruelty of others, the failings of those they hold love for in their hearts._ ”

Nixe closed her eyes, blocking out everything but the whiteness. If only people could be like that…it sounded too good to be true. But she would have thought the same about magic itself, before the Outsiders appeared.

“ _The ones you spoke of,_ ” the Luminon continued, “ _are those who have been overtaken by the darkness within their hearts. Hatred, anger, fear consumes them, twisting them into beings longing to release these dark emotions. Even those who have never wronged them suffer their wrath. Strangers, friends…even family. And such only perpetuates the sorrow and despair of mortalkind._ ”

Nixe lowered her head. People didn’t need to become monsters to hurt the ones they loved… “But how?” she asked, opening her eyes to see the realm of Solis once more. It must have been her magic that allowed her to see in this place, feel that strange current upon her skin…but for all she knew, the Luminon was all too close, imperceivable to Nixe still. “Why is this happening now?”

A strange sound echoed out, in the same manner as the Luminon’s voice. It took Nixe a few seconds to realize the Luminon had been about to say something, but had interrupted themselves. “ _Another is awakening._ ”

“Anoth—?” Nixe’s voice halted as soon as she realized what the Luminon meant.

“ _You must return to your world now,_ ” the Luminon said. “ _The light within you, the glint that shines now, will give you the strength to stand against those overtaken by their inner darkness. I know, in your heart, that you recognize what truly lies in the hearts of others. In time, I hope you will understand._ ”

So many more questions lingered in Nixe’s mind. More about the crazed Outsiders, what her own magical powers were, why _she_ had them or who else had them too. But before she could speak a single word, the world around her began to fade away into white, swirling around and away from her.

For a moment, the ground disappeared beneath her, only to return beneath her feet. The whirling light dissipated into darkness, not pitch-blackness but night. The sudden return of gravity unbalanced her, and Nixe caught herself upon her hands and one knee. Beneath her was a concrete pathway, framed by grass. Around her were play-structures, a sand-pit, a swing-set she sometimes passed time on if no one else was around. This was Meadow Park, not far from the library.

The light of the fog vanished, leaving only the lamps over the path to illuminate the park. Nixe pushed herself up, lifting one hand before her face. It was still clad in a long white-feathered glove…and so would the rest of her body be dressed in her magical costume. The thought of someone spotting her, perhaps even recognizing her, twisted her stomach into a knot—until she remembered the mask upon her face. And Outsiders always appeared blurry in videos and photos…hadn’t she heard the same about the heroines who’d first fought the Outsiders?

The thought of Outsiders snapped her back to the Luminon’s parting words, about another “awakening”. Another Outsider turning into a wild monster? It had to be nearby—the Luminon must have returned her here for a reason. But where?

Though she expected to be awkward and unsteady in her new footwear, each step was comfortable and light, as if she was as light as a feather and nimble as a cat. Her pace carried her an almost-astounding distance towards the exit of the park, and didn’t exhaust her even in the slightest. Even when she’d been a wide-eyed little girl, she’d never felt this full of energy before. How long could she run in this form before tiring? If Nixe had to guess…she suspected the answer might be “never”.

When she reached the street, Nixe stopped herself from near-full-speed right at the edge of the sidewalk. She looked in both directions, for any sign of the “awakened” Outsider.

The man who came running around the corner down to her left, glancing over his shoulder and screaming, seemed an answer.

Nixe bolted down the side of the road. As she drew closer and more people fled from the street, their eyes set upon her. Their faces first froze, full of terror, until relief and awe washed over them. One pair of children said something Nixe didn’t hear to their mother, who kept guiding her kids away from the scene.

When she rounded the corner, a car parked near the intersection suddenly began to crumple inward, its windows exploding into shards that glittered in the lamplight. The air filled with the stench of engine fluids—what if something caught fire? Nixe looked around for bystanders, but only noticed…the Outsider.

Nixe hadn’t seen one of their kind before. Or at least not one like this one. They had an almost-humanoid body, but Nixe soon realized their build was avian-like, with long legs upon sharp talons. Their head rested upon their small but stout torso, their gaunt face tipped with a hooked beak and two wide beady eyes. The only parts of their maroon body that bore feathers were their wings, covered in plumage that bore a rusty colour yet glistened like polished silver.

A horrific high-pitched wail escaped the Outsider, immediately evoking thoughts of harpies from fantasy stories Nixe had read. “Wretched monsters!” they cried, their pitch warbling as they spoke. “Never again shall they take the innocent!”

What in the world was the Outsider talking about? “What monsters?” Nixe asked.

The Outsider’s head turned towards her. Those dark eyes fixed upon her, and Nixe froze still.

“ _Huuuu_ man!” the Outsider screeched, stomping their feet and plunging their talons into the concrete as it was mere soil. “Master of these creatures of _death_! I will not rest until they have been destroyed, like so many beneath their treads!”

Before Nixe could ponder their words, the Outsider drew back one of their wings, then swung their limb in Nixe’s direction. A flurry of feathers loosened from the wings, spreading out in an arc. Nixe dove for the ground, tumbling upon impact. It didn’t hurt anywhere near as much as she’d expected, with how hard and fast she’d hit the pavement, but at least none of the feathers had struck her.

Nixe stood, just as the Outsider leaped onto a damaged car, its frame crunching beneath the creature. She had to stop them—but how? She needed a weapon, or magic, or something. But what power did she even have?

Could she _summon_ a weapon? Nixe brought a hand to her side, as if she was about to pull a sword from its sheath. Warmth flooded against her palm, and her fingers closed around something solid. She drew her hand outward, and in a flash of light and a scattering of white feathers, a pearly-white sword formed in her hand.

Before she could stare in amazement for longer than a second, the Outsider jumped high off of the car, their claws plunging down at Nixe.

Nixe jumped out of the way, clutching her sword in both hands. Would a sword work against an Outsider? Even if it was a magical weapon? With a shout and as mighty a swing as she could muster, Nixe slashed at the Outsider. Her blade left a white mark across the creature’s front, evoking a rising screech from the Outsider.

Before Nixe could recover from her swing, the Outsider’s wing smacked Nixe, flinging her off of her feet. Her impact against the ground felt nothing like being smashed onto hard asphalt should have. Nixe found her sword again—as if her hand was instinctively guided to its grip—rolled away from the Outsider, and pushed herself up once more.

As she stood, the Outsider thrust their head forward, the rust-coloured feathers reforming upon their wing. Letting out an echoing screech that made the air around Nixe ripple and grow strangely heavy, the Outsider folded their wings inward across their chest—then in a flash swung both out, unleashing a flurry of crimson feathers.

Nixe’s eyes widened, but her feet were too slow.

The world blurred into indistinct colours in that moment, as piercing, cutting pain flooded every inch of her body—like a thousand spears from head to toe. She barely felt herself landing upon the street beneath the lingering white-hot pain.

Yet that faint feeling of collapsing told her that— _somehow_ —that barrage of feathers hadn’t killed her. As her vision returned into focus, she glanced to her arms, expecting them to be bloodied…yet there wasn’t a trace of red upon her skin. Her clothes were roughened up, her skin scratched, yet she didn’t look nearly as injured as she’d thought she would. Still, a heavy weariness had filled her limbs—could she withstand another barrage like that?

Vibration through the ground, from the Outsider’s talons smashing down near her, snapped Nixe’s mind back to the battle. She mustered the strength to push herself away, just as one clawed foot plunged down where she had just been. As the Outsider raised their other foot, Nixe found her sword—or perhaps it found her hand—and she slashed at their leg, driving them back with a screech.

Nixe panted as she rose to her feet. The Outsider glared at her, their wings wreathed in pale light as their feathers regenerated. She needed to strike now…before it had the chance to…

…she needed more than her sword.

Picturing a bird spreading its wings to take flight, almost like she had to transform, Nixe let out a sharp cry and swung her blade outward, sending brimming energy down her arm and through the length of her sword.

That power erupted from her blade in a wing-shaped arc of light that struck the Outsider center-mass, bursting into scattering feathers upon impact and staggering the Outsider.

As it recovered, Nixe swung her sword once more, striking the Outsider again with her magic. It withstood the blast by closing its wings inward, just like it had posed before it had attacked. Not wanting to give it the chance, Nixe swung upward this time, her third blast of light managing to launch the Outsider into the air. She jumped into the air, as high as she’d knocked the Outsider, then held her blade aloft before swinging it down, with one last wing-shaped arc of light that blasted the creature down to the ground.

Nixe landed in front of the Outsider. Her stomach twisted at the sight of the motionless being—how badly had _she_ hurt them? Could her power kill Outsiders? Had she…

A soft white glow enveloped the Outsider. For a moment, the knot within her tightened…but when the light faded into sparks and wisps that floated away from their body, the Outsider remained upon the street. Their body was smaller now, their wings shorter and devoid of feathers…as if what Nixe saw now was their original form, before they’d become a monster.

Was…was it over? Had she stopped them, or whatever had driven them to cause such carnage? Nixe didn’t see anyone injured or hear anyone crying for help, thankfully. From her surroundings, and the multiple destroyed cars before her, it seemed like the Outsider had only taken out their fury on human vehicles… What had they said again, what had they called the cars—

“Hey! Hey, you!”

A voice snapped Nixe out of her thoughts. She looked behind her, thinking it must have been some bystander who’d witnessed the fight. But no one was there, and it dawned on her that the voice hadn’t sounded that close to her.

As she looked back down the street, she spotted a person standing in the middle of the road.

It was another girl. A girl in a silvery outfit with a smooth skirt and stiff shoulders. A soft green glow lined the hem of her skirt, accented her shoulders, and ran down the length of the white sleeve over her right arm. Her hair was a viridian bob-cut, and a band of verdant light concealed her eyes—much like Nixe’s feather-mask.

“Hello?” the girl shouted, holding her hand outward.

Nixe froze, but only for a few moments. When it truly sank in, her body finally answered her immediate instinct.

She turned away, and even faster than she’d answered this Outsider attack, Nixe started running. She turned at the intersection and kept going. She passed by Meadow Park and didn’t slow in the slightest. She ran far from her house, far from the library, far from the scene of the Outsider attack. Only once she was certain the other girl wasn’t on her trail did she duck into an alleyway, panting as if out of breath.

Even after facing her first foe, after being pulled into the Luminon’s realm…the thought of another learning anything about her, even if they were one of Nixe’s fellow heroines, terrified her more than anything.


	6. Leap

Nixe needed to hide. Away from the world, away from the crazed Outsiders, away from any of the other heroines. But what good would it do if she led anyone curious about her identity to her front door? How would her mother react to Nixe barging in, not as she knew her daughter but as a feather-haired magical heroine?

She ducked into a path between two rows of houses. Running had always been one of Nixe’s weaknesses in gym class. Yet she wasn’t out of breath now, wasn’t tired in the slightest.

Stopping by a tree, Nixe glanced over her shoulder to make sure no one was around—especially that other heroine with the green lights. After a quick glance ahead to ensure the coast was clear, she ducked behind the tree.

How did she…undo this? Turn back to normal? She’d made it happen by visualizing a bird flying free from its cage. Something about that thought had sparked that… _spark_ within her. So did she have to…put it back? Return it to its roost?

Nixe closed her eyes, picturing a bird—a dove of white so pure it radiated with brilliance—returning to its cage. It set itself upon its perch, in that deepest depth of her very being.

As its shine dimmed in her mind’s eye, white light filled her vision. Streams of warmth unwound from her body, fluttering across her skin like birds returning to their nest. The weight of her ordinary clothes returned upon her body as her old pair of non-heeled sneakers settled upon the grass. She almost lost her balance as the light faded, but she steadied herself against the tree. The sight of her white jacket sleeve confirmed that she was back to herself, back to being ordinary Nixe Fulton.

An ordinary teenager out late at night, shortly after another Outsider attack.

She had to get home.

Nixe started running for the street, but fatigue quickly set in, slowing her pace to a walk by the time she reached the sidewalk. The weight of the novel in her jacket against her chest with each laboured breath reminded her, to her relief, that _Lunal Harvest_ hadn’t somehow vanished during her transformation.

“Hey!”

Her heart jumped into her throat like a startled goose. She looked to her right, half-expecting that heroine in the green-lighted costume. Instead, it was just an older woman in plain clothing. “Are you crazy, kid?” she shouted. “You’d better get home right away!”

Biting her lip, trying to give her best impression of cluelessness, Nixe asked, “What? Why?”

“Another one of those Outsiders attacked!” the woman said. “Over near the library!”

“Oh…” Nixe looked away, then started along the sidewalk. The woman said something, but Nixe didn’t stop to listen. She just hoped the woman would believe she was just an ordinary kid, clueless of everything that had happened.

And part of Nixe, recalling that Outsider’s screams and barrages of feathers, almost wished she didn’t.

= ~ = ~ = ~ = ~ =

Nixe knew that her mother rarely watched the news. Despite this, her name being called from the living room after she came home immediately twisted her stomach into a knot. As she walked into the den, keeping her eyes away from the bottles on the table, she said, “Yes, Mom?”

Glaring at Nixe, her mother asked, “What took so long?”

That was all she had to say? How late was it now? “Oh, I was…looking for another book at the library,” Nixe said. “I didn’t realize how long I was looking. Sorry…”

Her mother stared for a moment longer, as if trying to discern any signs of dishonesty. Then her attention returned to the television, and Nixe took that as her cue to head back to her room.

Once she closed her bedroom door, Nixe flopped onto her bed. The book in her jacket pressed into her side; she quickly pulled it out, checking to make sure she hadn’t damaged it, then set it on her end-table.

Her body felt so heavy, so weary…but how couldn’t it, compared to how weightless and energetic she’d felt in her magical form? Even with that battle with the bird-Outsider fresh in her mind, she still thought of the way the wind brushed through her feather-hair, how she’d ran faster than she ever had in her life without tiring in the slightest. What else was she capable of in that form—aside from fighting crazed Outsiders?

As the minutes passed, her euphoria gave way to images of the Outsider’s rage, of that barrage of feathers that’d struck her. What would happen if she’d taken another attack like that? Could she die as her magical self? Or would she simply return to her normal self? Nixe hadn’t heard about any deaths caused by the Outsider attacks…not that she listened to the news anyway.

It wasn’t just the Outsider who lingered in her thoughts, but that other heroine as well. She must have sensed the Outsider, meant to stop them. Was that why Nixe had magical powers—to protect humankind, just like the heroines who stopped the Outsider invasion eight years ago?

And what the Luminon said…was that true? Those crazed Outsiders…they’d been overtaken by darkness in their hearts? Could something like that happen to a human, turning them into a monster too?

Perhaps Nixe already knew that answer all too well.

= ~ = ~ = ~ = ~ =

Other students chatted at the bus stop on Wednesday morning, the chilly wind drowning out their words…but not Nixe’s racing thoughts. She hadn’t thought of it yesterday, but _could_ she fly? Even if the wings were just for decoration, couldn’t she just run to school? How long would that take? Would her stamina even run out?

To outrace even the school bus, to blaze through downtown…

…would probably be a perfect way to make people suspicious.

The yellow bus pulled up to the curb before them, and Nixe banished that temptation and boarded the bus like the other ordinary students.

= ~ = ~ = ~ = ~ =

Somehow, other students spoke to Nixe more than usual that day. Her stomach twisted each time, as if she’d chirp out her secret in response to a math problem, but she managed to give the correct replies each time.

Once the clock had finally ticked down to the last bell, Nixe made her way outside. Her bus was waiting in the driveway, a mobile carrier to bring her back to her roost. She could fly around her neighbourhood for a while, but in the end she would have to resign herself back to her birdcage.

A faint warmth flared beneath her chest, but she kept herself from reacting visibly. A thought crossed her mind, and she checked her pockets. She had enough change for a bus ride home, if getting back would be too much—or too risky—for her magical self. Her mom wouldn’t think twice about where Nixe had been, as long as she was back before dinner.

Nixe headed for the sidewalk, away from Amaryllis High and the buses. As tempted as she was to pop into that cute café on the corner of the intersection, she doubted she had enough for a treat for anything but her eyes.

Downtown…what was there to do downtown? Did she even remember where the Museum of Nature was? If she’d brought her tablet, she could have found it through the city’s public wi-fi. She could ask someone…

As she stood at the intersection contemplating such, a soft voice behind her said, “Please excuse me.”

Nixe gasped in surprise, then blurted out as she turned, “Oh sorry, I didn’t realize I was bloc—”

Her throat and eyes froze at the sight of the person behind her. The voice hadn’t sounded unusual to Nixe, and perhaps she might not have noticed the pinkish tint to the woman’s skin.

But it was looking atop her head that evoked a cry from Nixe. What looked like a giant caterpillar was latched atop the woman’s head, a greyish blue bug-thing with crimson bulging eyes, thick stubby feet against the woman’s temples—

“I am sorry for startling you,” the woman said, before she stepped around Nixe. The woman continued across the street while Nixe stared at her back, at the body of that… _thing_ clinging to her body, long enough to extend down her back to her waist. If it hadn’t been for the not-quite-human skin tone, Nixe might have thought she was an ordinary person, under the control of some horrible alien insect.

Some of the Outsiders had fascinated Nixe. Like the avalerions, the bird-men with many pairs of wings—not like that Outsider she’d fought. And that one time she’d been at the mall with her parents, where one of the six-legged centaur-people had been eating at the food court. Nixe—she must have been twelve then—had asked them if she’d ever given people rides on her back. Her mother had scolded her for such an impolite question, even if the stag-centaur had seemed bemused by the question. Then her dad had hissed at her mom for making such a scene out of it…

Some of them though did creep her out, and maybe Nixe could do without seeing weird Outsiders with giant bugs on their heads.

Nixe turned away and strolled down the sidewalk, taking in the architecture and design of the buildings. Most were towering skyscrapers, but even they had some variety to their colour and shape. Then again, it was just different pale shades, minor differences like fancy corners and windowsills to disguise the orderly grid of inner Garden City. In that way, it wasn’t all that different from the suburbs.

But it was different enough. It wasn’t home, or anywhere near home, and that eased Nixe’s heart and steps. She felt just a bit lighter, her backpack less of a burden, almost like…

She slowed to a stop, stepping aside to not block the way for anyone else.

…like when she transformed.

The temptation brought a smile to her face. If no one saw her change, no one who would recognize her again, what would be the harm?

Nixe ducked down the nearest space between buildings. Even the alleyways were clean and well-illuminated in Garden City. She checked to make sure no one had followed her, no one was ducking out of a back door, or was already in the alley before she scurried behind a dumpster.

Closing her eyes, Nixe placed a hand to her chest. A glowing white bird in the cage leapt onto her hand, and with a wave upward, she cast it into flight—and beckoned her own feet from the ground.

When the light faded, Nixe’s eyes set upon her extended, now-gloved hand. What actually happened to her normal clothes and her backpack when she transformed? Perhaps the Luminon could answer that question, the next time they met.

That curiosity soon vanished beneath the brimming energy coursing through Nixe, a welcome replacement to her usual listlessness. She started to pace back and forth in the alleyway, with a spring in her step she knew she never displayed as her normal self.

As she prepared to emerge into everyday traffic, she paused. What if there’d been cameras that’d spotted her entering the alleyway, and other cameras that’d see a magical heroine running out from another exit? Maybe a pedestrian might have wondered why some school-girl was cutting through an alleyway, would put the pieces together…

Yet those anxieties felt like nothing compared to the sheer _magical_ feeling within Nixe now.

She took a deep breath, not sure if she even needed to breathe in this form. A wide grin took over her face as she sprinted out of the alleyway.

A few cries of surprise soon grew distant as she dashed down the sidewalk. She could have gone faster, but didn’t want to run into anyone. Yet even at her current speed, she weaved between pedestrians with ease.

Whenever she reached an intersection, she sprinted across in whichever direction had the active walk symbol. Nixe didn’t need to stop—it was if her mind was as swift in this form as her body. She weaved down major roads, coursed along side-streets, and blazed through back alleys. If she could handle the tight turns between buildings, maybe dodging pedestrians wouldn’t be a problem.

She dashed into one intersection, only to hear a horn to her left just before she reached the opposite sidewalk. The noise slowed her pace—just as she spotted the turning car driving towards her.

Her first instinct, as foolish as it seemed, was to jump. Her quick hop lifted her high enough to land one foot upon the car’s hood, and she pushed off and landed onto the roof before jumping off the car.

As she landed on the pavement, she glanced back to the car as it skidded to a stop. Another horn honking reminded her that she was still standing in the middle of the road, and she sprang over to the sidewalk. Even with this agility, Nixe thought, she needed to watch for traffic—perhaps more for the drivers’ sakes, though she had no desire to know how much being struck by a car would hurt her as her magical self.

She was getting in people’s ways, wasn’t she? Probably spooking them, too. If only she could fly, take to the skies and soar above Garden City…

…but just maybe…

Nixe found what she sought in the first alleyway she ran into: a fire escape. The ladder to the ground wasn’t lowered, but she was able to jump up to it and climb up. As she hurried up the metal steps, she had to wonder…just how high could she jump like this, if she really tried?

Then again, she was about to find out.

Climbing a ladder up to the rooftop, Nixe stood atop the six-storey building. A few of the surrounding buildings were taller, but most were at the same level or lower. She neared the edge overlooking the street, and a thought brought a twist to her stomach: should she be doing this? What if she _did_ fall? Maybe she could endure magical attacks, but a fall from this height?

But what if she ever needed to do this? To pursue one of the berserk Outsiders atop the rooftops of the city? The better she understood her limits, the better she could protect the people of Garden City.

She walked to the edge of the roof, gazing down to the street. A few people below spotted her, pointing and calling to others. Maybe they might have thought she was an Outsider herself, rather than one of the heroines. If she’d caught only a brief, distant glimpse, Nixe would have thought that someone like her wasn’t human. There were folks who believed the first heroines who’d saved Garden City hadn’t been human at all.

Nixe peered down. She was awfully high up…yet was it all that daunting compared to fighting monstrous beings? She turned to an adjacent building, stepped back to give herself space, then bolted towards the edge and jumped.

Her leap landed her on the _distant_ side of the building, and she had to hop to the next building before she could slow to a stop. Nixe hunched over panting, not out of exhaustion but out of adrenaline. She glanced over her shoulder, to the building she’d started on. That was…that was…

It’d been terrifying at first, yet with the knowledge that she _could_ …it was _exhilarating_.

She looked to a building across the street, then backed up before breaking into a sprint. Her leap carried her over the road and onto the opposite roof, almost releasing a cry of excitement from her throat as the wind coursed through her feathery hair and ruffled her garment.

Her feet touched down, and without stopping, she sprang to the next rooftop. Nixe jumped between more buildings of even height, trying to see how high into the air she could launch herself. More than the height of one storey… She took aim at a building one floor taller, and jumped onto its rooftop, landing into a crouch.

This was…this was amazing! Nixe walked to the edge of the building she now stood on, gazing down to the street. She’d managed to end up even higher from the ground than where she’d started.

As she scanned below, she spotted a crowd in front of a building on the other side of the street. Several of its members carried signs and marched along the sidewalk; they were chanting, though Nixe couldn’t make out what they were saying. She jumped to a closer building, inching towards the edge of the roof to get a better look.

Her eyes caught the words written on one sign: _KEEP OUTSIDERS OUT!_ Similar sentiments adorned the other placards she could make out. A protest against Outsiders? Nixe had never heard of such happening before. It wasn’t that big of a crowd, maybe three dozen at most.

Then again, there hadn’t been Outsiders going crazy and attacking people before, had there?

Nixe closed her eyes. She thought about the bird-Outsider she’d fought, their feral and furious demeanour. To humans, Outsiders really were monsters: inhuman beings with inhuman capabilities. And they’d once been _evil_ monsters, a legion from another world intent on conquering humankind.

Yet there was also that plant-Outsider from the library, the one who’d tried to save her from the cloud of light. The one of the same kind as that Outsider girl responsible for the Eden High incident.

Just like people, some were good…some had their problems. What about the one with the caterpillar on her head, the one whose appearance had disturbed Nixe? Sure, her appearance was bizarre, but did that merit such a reaction? Nixe should have apologized…

Nixe had never said hello to that plant-girl Outsider at Eden High. She hadn’t extended any welcome to any of them. None of them had greeted her either…but maybe she’d been visibly uncomfortable in their presence. As she usually was.

Was she any better than the people below, protesting their mere presence in Garden City?

“Hello?”

The voice behind her nearly made Nixe jump, and as she spun around, one foot caught onto the other. A sharp cry escaped her throat as she tumbled backwards.

The only thing that stopped her fall was a warm band that tightened around her midsection, tugging her forward onto her feet. Her eyes followed the shimmering golden band back to its source: the baton held by one of the two heroines standing on the rooftop before her.


	7. Fear

“I’m sorry about that!” said the girl who pulled the ribbon of light loose from Nixe’s body. “I didn’t mean to startle you.”

Once Nixe steadied herself, she looked between the two masked heroines. They were almost like day and night from first glance. The one on the right, whose ribbon baton dissipated into sparkles, wore a frilly dress adorned with ribbons, streaks of lavender and yellow that matched the rest of her outfit. A pair of lilac ribbons kept her sunny pigtails in place. Even her gloves and boots had ribbons tied around them.

Her wide smile, a touch awkward given the circumstances, clashed with the stern frown and crossed arms of the second heroine. This girl’s outfit was a sleep, simple dark-blue coat-like dress that covered her upper arms and had a smooth knee-length skirt. Her hair was dark and slick, like she’d been caught in a downpour. The galoshes and rubbery gloves added to that impression…why was she dressed like that?

“You must be the one Machina mentioned to us,” the girl in the rain-gear said. “She spotted someone dealing with one of those monsters, but they ran off when they saw her.”

“Machina?” asked Nixe. That must have been that heroine with the green-tinted costume.

With a little shrug, the brightly-coloured girl said, “Well, the first heroines used titles like that to protect their identities. We figured it was a good idea, too. Speaking of…this is Nimbus.” She gestured to her companion, who gave a single nod. “And I’m Ribbon. What can we call you?”

Nixe looked away, trying to think of something good. Her eyes lingered on her feathered white gloves, the wing-like folds of her skirt. A few different white birds crossed her mind; one in particular first came to mind.

Lifting her head, she answered, “Dove…Dove’s fine.”

Ribbon extended a hand, a gesture that seemed far too mundane for who they were— _what_ they were. Still, Nixe took her hand, and Nimbus’s as well after the second girl offered it. “Have you known your magic for long, Dove?” Ribbon asked. “Or was that other day the first time you discovered it?”

Nixe lowered her eyes. She’d known about it before she’d transformed for the first time. But did Ribbon not know about the Luminon? If they didn’t, how did either of them learn about their powers?

“Not too long ago,” Nixe answered. “Maybe about a week or so ago was the first time I…transformed.”

“You just managed to transform without knowing about it?” Nimbus asked. Her eyebrows rose beneath her mask—one might have hinted skepticism, but she seemed more surprised than suspicious.

“It just happened one day.” Nixe closed her eyes, not wanting to see if their expressions indicated belief. “Something I thought of brought this…this weird feeling inside of me. And one day it…it just happened.”

“No one saw it happen, right?” said Nimbus.

“I’m pretty sure not. W-what about you two?”

“Ribbon taught me and Machina how to do it,” Nimbus replied. “Somehow the both of us found our way to her, like we were drawn together.”

Some kind of fate at work? Nixe tried to recall if there was anyone at school she’d felt tempted to talk to lately, but of course…she never wanted to talk with anyone. “What about you, Ribbon?”

Ribbon’s cheery smile all but vanished. “It was…Eden High.”

“The Eden High incident?”

Ribbon nodded. “I was inside when it happened. I ran into the gym, and I saw the Outsider who’d…transformed. The other Outsiders at the school tried to stop her, but she overpowered them, then she grabbed me too. I just…” An odd chuckle escaped her. “I started thinking about the heroines who saved the world the last time, and…kinda wished then that I was one of them? With a pretty costume with all kinds of ribbons…and then I felt it. Inside of me. Somehow I brought it out…I transformed, broke free from her vines. I…” Ribbon closed her eyes. “I fought her. Then I ran away, changed back in one of the bathrooms, got out of there before anyone figured out it was me.”

Then Ribbon was the first heroine…of the new ones meant to stop this new crisis. What about the ones who’d stopped the Outsider invasion? “So you’ve been fighting those crazed Outsiders ever since?” Nixe asked.

Ribbon put her hands behind her back and bowed her head. “Was…was that one Outsider the only one you’ve fought?”

“Yes. Why?”

Nimbus’s dark eyes narrowed behind her mask. “It’s not just happening to Outsiders, Dove. There’s humans turning into monsters, too.”

“Really?” Hadn’t the Luminon said something like that? That it wasn’t only the children of ether that were “burdened”? “But…but how are these people transforming?”

“I don’t think they’re gong crazy, Nixe,” Ribbon said, her lavender eyes closing beneath her bow-shaped mask. “I think something terrible is happening to them.”

Nixe clutched her other wrist. Surely the Luminon would know that, then. Why hadn’t they explained it to Nixe? Or had they intended to, before that bird-Outsider went on a rampage?

Ribbon stepped closer, and Nixe lifted her head back up. “Dove, are you willing to help us? Whatever is going on, we have to protect Garden City—humans _and_ Outsiders. We have to find out and stop whoever’s behind all of this.”

“Do you…have any idea who that might be?” Nixe asked. “Or what?”

Neither of the two heroines answered. They likely knew as much as Nixe.

But she didn’t need any more convincing. After all, the Luminon seemed to share the same desire. “Of course, I’ll help.”

Ribbon’s smile returned. “Thank you, Dove. Would you be able to meet up with us at Eden High tomorrow night?”

“Eden High? Why?” Would they realize she lived anywhere near there?

“It’s…an easy place to get to,” Ribbon said, “and no one is around now that it’s closed. Can you meet us there?”

Perhaps Ribbon lived in the area—she had to have been a student of Eden High, if she was there for the incident. So Nixe wasn’t saying anything Ribbon herself hadn’t. “Sure, I can do that.”

“Then we’ll meet you there, Dove!” Ribbon held her hand out again, and Nixe shook it out of courtesy. “I’d better get home now. Make sure no one sees you change back, okay? We’ll see you later.”

Nimbus gave a smile and nod before following Ribbon to a nearby fire-escape ladder—probably how they’d gotten to Nixe, unless they had chased her across the rooftops. What would people have thought, seeing the three of them jumping between buildings?

She sighed to herself. It’d been fun, but she couldn’t let herself get carried away like this. She was putting herself at risk, if not causing needless panic. Nixe climbed down the ladder, and made sure neither of the two heroines—or two similar teenage girls—were around before she transformed back to her normal self.

She emerged from the alleyway, heading for the nearest bus stop. Despite her little flight today, she still had to return to the birdcage.

= ~ = ~ = ~ = ~ =

Her house was already flooded with the garlicky fragrance of her mom’s chicken thighs when Nixe arrived home. She half-anticipated some comment from her mother as she passed by the den, something about being however late Nixe was…until she glimpsed the bottles on the coffee table and wondered what else she’d expected.

Her backpack landed in her chair, and her body fell onto her bed. Somehow, she felt even more weary than usual. The exhilaration of her magical self was so sharp a contrast to her dull, dreary life. Just how much time had slipped away while she was running around downtown, compared to how slowly the hours passed here?

The bus ride home had also seemed so long. Rather than sight-see, take in a different view from the usual ride to and from school, Nixe’s head had remained lowered. Her thoughts fixated on the two heroines she’d met. The girl in the raincoat-like costume might have been from another school, perhaps even Amaryllis High. But Ribbon had been inside Eden High on the day of the incident. Could Ribbon be a girl she knew? Then again, could she even say she knew anyone at school? Nixe couldn’t even tell which of the kids in her classes were originally from Eden High.

And what if, she’d worried on the bus, she’d given away some clue about herself? She’d told herself she hadn’t said anything personal, but what if some detail she’d given had slipped her mind?

It was more than just the two girls on the rooftop. There was the third, Machina. The one who’d seen her that night. Those three heroines worked together, kept in touch—through magic, or did they have more mundane means of contact? Would the time come when Nixe would need to reveal her real self to them? Would they want to learn more about her—

The wall before her started to grow brighter, along with her bedsheets. Nixe sprang up as light began to drown out the rest of the bedroom. She couldn’t even see the other half of her room through the blinding cloud of light. If her door hadn’t been closed, her mom would notice for sure—but what if someone saw it through the window, or her mom noticed the light beneath the door?

Nixe hopped off of her bed, feeling the cloud trying to suck her in once more. She kept herself steady as she drew that white bird from its cage. As if casting her own spirit into the Luminon’s portal, Nixe rose off of her feet as the whiteness consumed her.

= ~ = ~ = ~ = ~ =

Her heeled feet touched down in Solis, upon the shimmering grass that came into focus all around her. An idyllic glade emerged from the white, like a thick fog withdrawing from all around her.

Silence greeted her, an eerie stillness that reminded her of her first “visit” here. She reached out for one of the pearlescent trees around her, staring at her gloved hand as her fingers grazed the bark. It felt warm, _alive_ , in a way the rough exterior of trees in her world didn’t. Would she be able to sense the life in trees as her magical self?

That reminder of where she was now prompted her to speak up. “Luminon? Are you there?” What did they want now? Would it be a quick conversation, or would her mom end up checking her bedroom only to find that her daughter had completely disappeared? “Luminon?”

Finally, that echoing voice answered from everywhere around her. “ _You have met others who share your gift._ ”

The other heroines. Nixe nodded, to nowhere in particular. Where was the Luminon, exactly? Was _everywhere_ a possibility? “Have you met them too?”

“ _No. I have not encountered them. It was mere coincidence that brought you before me._ ”

“Do you know who they are?”

“ _I know little about them. I cannot follow most in your world. Merely sentiments, emotions, the darkness clouding over hearts. You are different, for you have been before me. I have watched you at times, overseen what you have witnessed in your world._ ”

“Like…that protest downtown?”

“ _Yes._ ” _Something_ changed about the surroundings; Nixe couldn’t describe it, but the atmosphere itself was colder, not as vibrant. “ _A gathering of fear, distrust, anger._ ”

Nixe clutched her hands together. “People are scared, with all those crazed monsters attacking.” She didn’t want to use that certain word.

“ _But as I told you, it is not merely the children of ether who allow their inner darkness to consume them. It is not merely those who awaken and change that bring despair and sorrow to others._ ”

The Luminon had told her that. And so had Ribbon. Yet it hadn’t lingered in Nixe’s mind…

“ _You had believed that only the children of ether were the ones who had succumbed. That only the beings you viewed as inhuman, as…Outsiders…could become ‘monsters’._ ”

That word echoed with a disdain and distaste through Nixe—which she felt for herself. The Luminon was right. She’d assumed it was only the Outsiders who were turning into crazed monsters. “But…don’t people know that humans have been turning into monsters too?”

“ _Do they not? Or do they believe the children of ether are to blame for such?_ ”

Nixe closed her eyes. She didn’t think she could be sick in this form, but it didn’t sate the nauseous guilty feeling in her core. “ _It is the nature of all beings to blame that which they do not understand for their troubles. It is a story that has repeated many times throughout the history of both your people and the children of ether._ ”

How many times had the Luminon watched this story unfold? Over how many years? Centuries? Maybe even millennia?

“ _It is a story that I wish to bring to an end,_ ” continued the Luminon. “ _And I ask for your help in doing so. To protect your people from those who have succumbed, and to prevent others from falling in turn._ ”

Still feeling a bit uneasy, Nixe asked, “Wh-what about the other heroines? Ribbon, and—”

“ _I ask that you do not tell them of me and of our conversations here. The time will come to share this with them, but for now I place my trust in you._ ”

But why her? Because of what the Luminon surely saw in her? Before she could ask, the echoing voice spoke again. “I shall return you to your world now. Reflect on what we have spoken of here, and upon your own heart, Nixe.”

She had no strong desire to reflect upon herself, nor was returning home so enticing a thought. Yet she closed her eyes, and let the ground beneath her cease to exist, the void swallowing her away from the Luminon’s world once more.

= ~ = ~ = ~ = ~ =

Her feet touched down upon the floor of her bedroom, the blinding light beyond her eyelids vanishing in an instant. Opening her eyes, Nixe blinked several times, as if her bedroom wasn’t already in clear focus or as if anything was out of the ordinary. Well, there was one thing—

Three knocks sounded upon her bedroom door, and Nixe nearly squawked in surprise. With closed eyes and held breath, she quickly bid the bird back into its cage. Light and energy streamed around her body as her mother’s voice called out, “Nixe!”

Nixe held her response until she’d landed on her feet again, back to her normal self. “One second, Mom!” Nixe glanced around to make sure no trace of anything magical lingered, then rushed for the knob.

As she opened the door, Nixe asked, “”Is supper ready? Sorry I didn’t hear you at first, I was…distracted.”

“It is now,” her mom said. Despite the usual clutter on her coffee table, she didn’t look as..unkempt as usual. “But there’s something else I wanted to tell you.”

“Hm?” Nixe said, following her mom into the kitchen.

Only once Nixe sat before her plate, with chicken and vegetables plopped on haphazardly, did her mother continue. “Your father called while you were out.”

Nixe’s appetite vanished. “Wh-what?”

“He wanted to tell you himself, but I told him you were out with friends. Anyway…” Her mom gave a smile, the closest she could come to a sunny face. “Your father will be coming home from his business trip this weekend.”

If Nixe had already eaten a crumb of her dinner, she might have been sick.

“He wants you to know he’s proud of you for doing so well at school even with everything going on in the city,” her mother continued, seemingly unaware of Nixe’s reaction. “And that he wishes he could have been home sooner, but his work has been keeping him busy away from Garden City.”

A spark of fury shot through the churning anxiety within Nixe. Did her mom really think she was that stupid? To still be swallowing that story at sixteen?

“M-Mom,” Nixe said, “do you mind if I eat in my room tonight? I’ve got a lot of homework…”

Shrugging, her mother said, “Sure. Just don’t leave your plate in your room.”

Nixe took her dinner to her desk, then threw herself back onto her bed. She didn’t have the stomach to put herself through wax beans straight from a can tonight and chicken doused with enough garlic powder to stink up her bedroom. It wasn’t that her mom was a terrible cook…but when she was drunk, she didn’t care. She couldn’t care. Just like she didn’t care about how every attempt at “getting back together” ended the same way, with the same fighting and screaming that before long grew loud enough that even earphones couldn’t drown it out.

Shaking her head, Nixe slowly sat up. She would have liked to think her mother would check on her, to make sure she was actually doing homework and eating her dinner. But her mom wouldn’t, and it wasn’t because she trusted her daughter.

She just didn’t care when she was like this.

She was like this because she just didn’t care.

Dragging herself to her chair, shoving her backpack onto the floor, Nixe sat down. She still wasn’t in the mood for food, but had to make dinner vanish one way or another. If only she could magic it away…

…if only.

She still didn’t understand the Luminon, what they were doing. But she didn’t doubt their sincerity. Their empathy for her. For the pain in her heart.

If it was really possible to save people from their inner darkness, or whatever the Luminon thought of it…how could she decline that?

How many lives other than her own would such a thing brighten?


	8. Hope

“Miss Fulton?”

Nixe’s head snapped up at her English teacher’s voice. “Um, yes?”

Given the stares from students around her, with hints of bemusement here and there, she realized whatever question she was meant to answer must have already been asked. The teacher looked to a raised hand on the other side of the class. “Miss Radant?”

The girl lowered her hand and answered, “The eroded statue represents how time washes away even the most renowned deeds of the past.”

The teacher thanked the girl for her answer and continued speaking. Nixe kept herself from sighing; hopefully attention had shifted away from her. The latter half of the class was dedicated to study, with most students discussing the book in question with each other. Nixe kept to herself, pretended to read, but the only story on her mind was the one that’d unfolded yesterday.

When the class bell rang, Nixe was one of the last to rise from her seat. But she halted at the door upon hearing her name from the teacher. “Hmm?”

Her eyes soft behind her spectacles, the English teacher asked, “Is something wrong, Miss Fulton? You seemed quite unfocused today, and it’s not the first time I’ve noticed such from you.”

Quickly shaking her head, Nixe replied, “No, not really.”

“Are you sure, Nixe?”

She nodded just as abruptly. “Yes, it’s nothing. I’m sorry I haven’t been paying attention.”

Before the teacher could say anything more, Nixe hurried out of the classroom. Was it so obvious that other things were on her mind?

But was she more worried about other people finding out about what’d been on her mind today—or what’d been on her mind all the other days?

= ~ = ~ = ~ = ~ =

All Nixe had to go on was “tomorrow night”, so she waited until after sunset to leave. Her mom had drank a little less that day, and her hamburgers were fine—her dad’s burgers were better, but thinking about her father had only quashed Nixe’s appetite. Even her lunch had been left untouched in her backpack.

She’d given the excuse of going over to a friend’s house, and of course her mother didn’t realize that Nixe _had_ no friends to visit. Her father would have never allowed it, and would have started a squabble if he’d heard her mother’s approval—her dad accusing her mom of being neglectful, her mom asking how he was one to talk when it was never there for what was important, and Nixe just trying to finish her dinner as quickly as possible.

Alone, Nixe hurried down the sidewalk, the last remnants of the golden evening sky fading into grey-blue. The occasional car cruised through the suburbs street, and only a few pedestrians wandered the sidewalks. What if she showed up at Eden High, but the other heroines had already been spotted and forced to leave before Nixe showed up?

She stopped at that thought. The last thing she wanted was for _them_ to see _her_ —as her true self. Nixe slipped between a row of houses and the wooden fence behind a gas station, glancing around to make sure no one was watching her. Once she headed in a little deeper, out of view of the sidewalk, she placed once hand to her chest and let the bird out of its cage.

Walking half of the way had taken a little over ten minutes. Nixe took less than a minute to run the rest of the distance as her magical self—as Dove, so she’d called herself to the other heroines. Soon the silhouette of Eden High appeared in the night. In the dark, she couldn’t tell how much of the damage to the three-storey building remained, how much had been repaired. She caught voices from over at the baseball diamond—had people spotted her, or were they talking about something else?

The heroines wouldn’t be standing out front, so Nixe ran around to the back of the building. She looked around, for a door they’d snuck in through or a loose window. They had to have a hiding-spot for themselv—

“Dove!”

The voice came not from within the building, but above. On the lowest part of the roof—above the backstage of the school auditorium, if Nixe remembered correctly—stood Ribbon. “We’re up here, Dove. Here!”

As Ribbon swung her arm down, her streamer baton materialized in her hand. Nixe climbed up the shimmering ribbon, then clambered onto the edge of the building with a hand from Ribbon.

The two climbed up a ladder to the top of the school, where the other two heroines awaited. Nixe’s attention settled on the unfamiliar heroine. Though “unfamiliar” wasn’t quite true—she was certainly the girl Nixe had fled from after fighting that crazed bird-Outsider. Her dress was sleek and reflective like chrome, accented with green rings and blinking light upon her costume and the white sleeve that covered her right arm. The girl’s face was only vaguely visible beneath the verdant shine of her visor. The ensemble reminded Nixe of the covers of retro-esque science-fiction novels she’d spotted in the library, though such stories weren’t her cup of tea.

“Dove,” Ribbon said, gesturing between the two with a wide smile, “this is Machina. And Machina, this is Dove.”

Before Nixe could extend a hand, Machina held out her left, and Nixe obliged. “A pleasure to meet you, Dove,” Machina said with a smile. “I’d sensed that Outsider turning that night from the library, and Id hurried over as soon as I could. Imagine my surprise to find a new heroine had already stopped them.”

The library? Which library? Had it been the Meadow branch, by any chance? Was Machina someone she might have known by name?

Of course, whoever Machina was, surely she didn’t know anything about Nixe.

“You three have been fighting them for a while now, right?” Nixe asked. “W-what happens after you defeat them? Do they return to their senses?”

Neither Ribbon nor Machina returned Nixe’s stare. Nimbus was the only to finally answer. “We don’t know. All the ones we’ve turned back to normal…didn’t wake up.”

“What?” asked Nixe, her eyes widening.

“I’ve tried to see if my magic could make them wake up,” Ribbon said, “but nothing I’ve tried worked. When I try to sense within them, it feels like…something is missing within them. Machina thinks the same, too.”

Machina nodded solemnly. Something missing? Was the Luminon perhaps rescuing their spirits upon their darkness being vanquished? Or was that the result of whatever power caused them to become monsters in the first place?

“Anyway…” Nimbus’s voice spoke up. “We’ve gotta talk about your little playtime yesterday.”

The almost-accusatory tone made Nixe shudder. “What? Why?”

“Some people thought you were an Outsider, or that something that happened for you to be running around the city like that.”

“I know it feels pretty amazing when we’re like this,” Ribbon said, “but we’ve got to be careful, and not just for ourselves. We can’t make people panic, right?”

Nixe lowered her head. She’d felt so alive yesterday, closer to flying free like a bird than she’d ever expected to. Yet she’d only caused problems by doing so. “I’m sorry…”

“It’s alright.” Ribbon’s smile grew. “I suppose you were just curious, and the better you understand your capabilities, the better you can keep everyone safe.”

“How long have you been fighting without us?” Machina asked.

“That one you saw me fight,” Nixe replied, “that was the only one I’ve fought.”

“I see. Ribbon mentioned you’d figured out how to transform by yourself. I’d wondered if it happened when you were attacked by one of them, like Ribbon.”

Then they must have kept in touch, and the other two had told Machina about their meeting. “You girls know each other in…in real life?” It wasn’t as if Nixe thought this was a delusion or dream, but it still didn’t feel like this was _herself_.

While her partners nodded, Ribbon answered, “Yes. I met Nimbus at Amaryllis High. She started feeling something was weird about me, and when she asked me about it all, I figured maybe she was drawn to me somehow. So I told her how I transform, and she managed to do it too.”

“And the two of them saved me when one of the monsters attacked,” Machina added, her hand to her chest. “I ran into them later, as themselves, and…I just _knew_ it was them. And they figured I was one of _them_ too.”

Nixe bit her lip. How long before she’d have to reveal who she really was to these girls?

As if in response to her discomfort, Ribbon stepped a bit closer. “If you aren’t ready to share yourself with us, Dove, that’s okay. What’s important is having your help in protecting Garden City. Once you start honing your magical senses, you’ll know when someone changes and that we’ll need your help.”

But how could Nixe figure that out when she couldn’t play around in her magical form? Perhaps they could tap into such senses out of their magical forms, but how would she know what to find without having known it in the first place?

A few seconds of silence passed, with Nixe’s eyes wandering between the three. None of them made a noise. Maybe they expected more questions, pondered explanations.

Finally, Machina spoke. “Did you feel that, Nixe?”

Nixe shook her head, a panicked feeling rising in her chest.

“I did,” Ribbon said, without a hint of mirth in her voice or a smile upon her face.

“What?” Nixe closed her eyes, trying to feel whatever they could feel now.

“Another one of those light-clouds,” Nimbus said. “Come on girls, we’ve got to stop it quickly!”

A light-cloud? Like…

The other heroines raced to the edge of the rooftop. Nimbus conjured an umbrella to float down to the grass, and rocket-boosters in Machina’s heels slowed her descent. Ribbon hopped to the lower roof below, stopping to glance up before she reached the ground. “Dove, come on!”

Her body trembling, Nixe jumped down after Ribbon, not trusting herself to stick the landing or slow her fall from such a height. Once she and Ribbon landed upon the ground, the heroines raced down the sidewalk. Machina took the lead, with Ribbon and Nimbus close.

Nixe lagged behind the others. The Luminon had said the spirits in Solis were freed of their inner darkness. If something was missing from within these monsters, if these monsters _were_ the inner darkness… It couldn’t be…

As the girls ahead raced into an intersection, Ribbon pointed to the right and shouted, “There!”

Nixe caught up, her eyes catching the expanding cloud of radiant fog in the middle of the street. Screams cut through the air as people abandoned their vehicles, ran down the sidewalks, even between the rows of stopped cars.

Nimbus raised a hand, an umbrella materializing in her grip and opening with a twirl of her wrist. The lights along Machina’s right arm shone bright as she braced her elbow with her left hand. Ribbon waved her hand before her, weaving a trail of sparkles that formed her ribbon baton.

Past the three, Nixe spotted a man tripping on a pothole, crashing to the pavement as the light drew closer to him.

“Hurry!” Ribbon cried, racing ahead of the others as she lashed out her ribbon baton. The band of light curled around the man’s midsection as Machina and Nimbus slowed to a stop behind her. Machina fired a pulsing green beam from her right palm, while Nimbus spun her umbrella to unleash a stormy tornado into the heart of the glowing cloud.

Nixe stood still. The one-expanding cloud of light was beginning to shrink under the two heroines’ attack, and yet the pull of that white void was still strong enough that Ribbon had to hold her baton with both hands while the man clung to the ground.

“ _Nixe._ ”

The voice came from within the cloud. For a terrifying moment, Nixe was certain the other heroines would have heard the Luminon’s voice—and heard her name. Yet none of them seemed to react.

“ _This child of anima will be cleansed of his darkness. This is how all who live in peace in Solis are brought into its tranquility. He will be purified, as I wish for all children of anima and ether to be._ ”

Was this how the Luminon wanted to do that, though? With them kicking and screaming as they were dragged into another dimension?

“ _Mortalkind has proven that they cannot shed their innermost failings. You know that all too well yourself, Nixe. This is for the enlightenment for all in your world. To free another heart from hate and fear._ ”

Maybe…maybe the Luminon was right about that, but…but like this…?

“ _We cannot allow these three to interfere. You must stop them, Nixe._ ”

A weak, almost-inaudible voice gasped out from her throat. “Wh-wha…”

Grunting, Ribbon cried out, “Dove…help! Focus your power into the cloud!”

“ _If they are allowed to continue, then nothing will change. Mortalkind will continue to suffer under the burden of these failings. Those hurt by others will only continue to bring others pain._ ”

Nixe felt herself tremble, as if the body she was within wasn’t quite her own. She…she couldn’t…

“ _You must act now, Nixe. To follow the light of hope, and free the hearts of those like yourself from the cruelty and suffering you know. Or to allow the darkness to remain, to fester and spread forevermore._ ”

She’d told herself last night that maybe there was truth to what the Luminon was saying, some good that might come of it. That maybe they were right, that maybe the Luminon really could fix everything. Save her from the nights of burying herself beneath her blankets with her earphones in, trying to drown out the same arguments about the same nonsense, trying to forget how it’d brought her to tears so often as a child that she’d run out by the time she was a teenager…

They weren’t going to change. And if her parents couldn’t do that for the one person who was supposed to mean the world to them, what could? If that wasn’t enough to make someone do the right thing…what was?

Nixe stared into the cloud of light. It was growing smaller, but refused to release the man caught at its edge. He wouldn’t be the last, whatever she did now.

But from the moment she’d first met the Luminon, had learned of their desires, had convinced herself in their conviction, one thing had kindled in her heart. It wasn’t magic. It was something she’d once believed in, had once acted on…and had once been shattered completely.

That one single moment it’d been taken from her, only for it to now rest in this very moment…

Tears sparkled in the corner of her eyes. She lifted one hand, staring at the feathery glove that her magical self wore. Maybe she couldn’t change anything as Nixe Fulton, but as Dove…

She took a deep breath, shuddering as she opened her eyes.

…she just couldn’t give up hope now.

Nixe extended her hand, her winged sword appearing in her grip. Drawing her weapon back, she channelled her magic into the blade. She closed her eyes, feeling the presence of that magical vortex and the three heroines before her in some sense she could comprehend yet couldn’t explain.

Then she swung her sword.

She felt the impact of her magic, and heard the screams that followed. When Nixe finally opened her eyes, let herself see the aftermath, Nimbus and Machina were lying on the ground. Ribbon’s feet dragged against the pavement towards the swelling cloud of light. It washed over the man, enveloping him—and the band of light that had been wrapped around him suddenly went slack before Ribbon, causing her to tumble backwards.

The cloud retracted, collapsing into a spherical shape before winking out of existence in a burst of sparkles. Darkness returned to the suburban street, as Machina and Nimbus slowly pushed themselves up.

Ribbon’s cracking voice was the first to break the silence. “Wh…what ha…”

Nimbus spun towards Nixe as she stood, her umbrella tight in her hand. “Did you…?”

Machina’s wide eyes were visible through the shine of her visor. “Dove, you…why did…”

What could Nixe say now? How could she explain herself? Nixe took a slow step back, contemplating her actions…and her choices now. Her sword remained in her hand, but could she muster that will once more?

“Dove,” Machina said, her left hand drifting to her right arm. “You…you didn’t mean to, did…”

The umbrella in Nimbus’s hand trembled. “You… Is this how you knew about your magic? Whoever’s behind this…you’re with _them_ , aren’t you?”

Machina glanced to Ribbon, who still hadn’t turned towards Nixe. Her right arm slowly rose towards Nixe, a green glow welling in her palm. “Is…is that true, Dove?”

They didn’t know about the Luminon. About what Nixe knew. How would they understand?

The power within Machina’s hand grew stronger, as if about to fire at any moment. The look on Machina’s face was one of uncertainly, apprehension—but what would prompt her to finally fire?

And Nimbus…Nimbus remained still, as if waiting for an answer. Or a reason to strike. Her glare wasn’t confused or hurt, like Machina’s; it was downright furious. She _wanted_ to fight.

But the last thing Nixe wanted now was to fight either of them, any of them.

She turned, and started running.

“I don’t think so!” screamed Nimbus.

A powerful gale swept after Nixe, nearly flinging her off of her feet. She glanced back as glistening shards formed in the swirling winds, crashing to the ground in a line headed straight for her. Nixe dove out of the way, letting her sword fall loose from her grip and vanish into light. As she glanced back, Nimbus started after her, umbrella closed

Nixe didn’t know what to expect, but she jumped to the side anyway, moments before a bolt of lightning struck the pavement where she’d once stood. “Get back here!” roared Nimbus.

Much fainter, without the fury of her fellow heroine, came Ribbon’s voice at last. “Stop, Nimbus!”

Nixe glanced back, to Ribbon hurrying towards Nimbus. “Ribbon…!” Nimbus spat, before turning back to Nixe.

“S-stop!” Ribbon cried. From her distance from the other heroines, Nixe couldn’t tell if Ribbon was crying or not. But her tone suggested such.

Whatever would happen next, it wasn’t worth standing around for. Nixe turned and ran, sprinting down the street. As she ran into busier roads, ones where the traffic hadn’t ground to a halt, she continued through the lanes, weaving around and jumping over vehicles. Were the other heroines still behind her…?

A light began to shine above the center of the intersection ahead. Nixe knew in an instant what it was, felt the same energy from it as all of her other escapes to Solis. This time, it truly was an escape.

Springing off of a nearby car, Nixe flung herself into the growing white void, letting her world and anyone who might have been pursuing her slip away.


	9. Message

Nixe landed in the realm of the Luminon, the idyllic grasslands unfolding before her. Everything shone with the same brilliance as before, yet it didn’t dazzle her as it had the other times she’d seen the beauty of this world.

She looked up to the endless sky and gazed around the never-ending expanse, feeling as if she was just as alone as she’d been when Solis was nothing more than a white void. Finally, she could take the isolation, the refusal to acknowledge her, no longer. “Luminon!” she cried out, her voice not quite tinged with anger. “Luminon, please answer me!”

After what felt like several minutes, no answer came. Nixe felt herself trembling; why wouldn’t the Luminon respond, now of all times? “We need to talk about…about everything! Please, answer me!”

The Luminon didn’t answer. Clenching her fists, Nixe shouted, “I…I understand it all! You’re the one turning people into monsters! Why?”

She’d known that in that moment, and yet had made the choice to assist the Luminon. That last question was almost as much for herself as the Luminon.

The soft, feminine voice of the entity finally answered, ringing not from all around Nixe, but from directly behind—as if she could turn around and finally see the Luminon for whom they truly were.

“ _For this world to remain pure, the darkness of mortal souls must remain in your world._ ”

“B-but why do you turn them into monsters?”

“ _I do not beckon them to awaken as such creatures. It is their desire for others to suffer for that which causes them suffering. To satisfy their fury at the world around them, whatever it might inflict upon others._ ”

Nixe’s trembling hands closed upon her chest. “There…there has to be another way! You…”

“ _Once a mortal succumbs to that inner darkness, it is inevitable that they will bring harm upon others. Even if that darkness did not emerge as these creatures, it would still continue to wound others._ ”

Shaking her head, Nixe said, “People are getting hurt…”

“ _While I do not command them, my magic within them restrains them. My will withholds them from truly unleashing their fury when it would cause dire harm to the innocent. Some of those who awakened would have truly desired mortal harm upon others. And some already bore the taint of the darkest crimes of your people._ ”

“The other heroines…they said the people you turn into monsters…they don’t wake up.”

“ _Their consciousness remains here in Solis, existing in peace. What remains in their vessel is their darkness, cast off from their light, joined with ether to replace that which has been severed from them. When confronted with that which brings them the greatest fury or even terror, their darkness beckons the ether to overwhelm their being, transforming them into creatures desiring only to inflict pain upon others. The magic that you and your fellow heroines possess destroys that ether, returning them to their original form. Even then, a trace of the magic lingers within them, maintaining their vessel until the time comes that their light can be returned to their bodies._ ”

“But why does it have to be this way?” Nixe cried out, closing her eyes. “Can’t…can’t you…”

“ _The time will come when enough have gathered here, freed from selfish and cruel desires. They will want all they care for to know this serenity, and with their aid, I shall wreathe all of your city within my light, freeing all within from their darkness within. This realm will then become a place to banish that darkness, while their pure hearts may return to your world._ ”

If only the Luminon could do that now, instead of what they were doing…

When she opened her eyes, countless figures of light had appeared all around her. “ _These are those whom I have released of their burden, Nixe. Please hear their pleas, for all of them desire only the best for the ones they care for._ ”

She had only a moment to reflect her own parents before a myriad of ringing, echoing voices filled her mind. Despite the sheer number, she made out each one in her mind clearly. Mirth, joy, bliss—all of them brimmed with happiness and hope…the kind Nixe wished she still felt.

What had brought her parents together? There must have been _something_. They’d been together for years before Nixe was born. They hadn’t fought when she was very young, or at least Nixe had no memories of such. Then it started falling apart, slowly but surely, irrevocably. All because of whatever in their hearts that had torn them apart, that refused to be mended, that would never change.

All of these spirits, human and Outsider, only wished for everyone else to know the peace they knew here.

Nixe closed her eyes. Through the light of Solis, a memory shone through. A time when her dad was actually around, her mom wasn’t always drunk, when they could go to the park or the beach without Nixe fearing everything falling apart. But had the cracks always been there? Had she simply not noticed, or had her parents kept it concealed until the dam finally burst?

Did these spirits understand how their loved ones must have felt in their absence, though? As Nixe wondered if they truly understood everything that had happened, another thought occurred to her. Something the Luminon had spoken of in their very first meeting, yet she hadn’t asked more about since. Now that she knew the fate of those taken into Solis, the fate of their light—and their darkness…

“Luminon…” She almost wished they weren’t so close to her now. “When I was taken here that night, when we first met…why didn’t you purge the darkness from my heart?” How she’d never welcomed the Outsiders at Eden High, her seething anger at her parents whenever they pretended they could make things work, her shock at how alien Outsiders were, the assumptions she’d made of that Outsider at the library…surely the Luminon could see that she was no less burdened as the others they’d freed?

The Luminon answered. “ _The glint of magic within you is not a natural thing of your world, or even that of the children of ether. It is not something that I truly understand. It is not something that can be severed from your physical form as your spirit could. If I were to free your light from your vessel, what you inner darkness would become would be empowered by that glint. It would interfere with my restraint over that darkness. I would not be able to prevent you from carrying out your cruelest desires._ ”

Nixe couldn’t think of any time she’d wanted to hurt anyone else, in any way. Even that crazed Outsider, or…or the two heroines… But she couldn’t pretend that anger didn’t exist, didn’t boil over every time her parents tried to get back together. That night…the night she’d lost faith in hope… There’d been a painting she’d made in Art class the year before, a scene of her and her parents having a picnic. The sort of thing she’d pretended to experience without a care in the world, when asked by friends and teachers. It was her favourite work, even if she wasn’t anything special for a fifth-grader, and she’d kept it on her closet door for years. In that darkest moment, she’d noticed it there…as if it was there to mock her. She’d torn it off the wall, ripped it to shreds…and had regretted it for weeks. It’d flashed into her minds when the time came to choose her courses for her first year of high school, had turned her off from taking Art despite how much she’d used to enjoy it.

Nixe lifted her head, to a distorted vision of Solis—the landscape before her blurred by her tears.

“ _It may seem heartless to you, but it is the truth that all must accept. All beings are burdened by this darkness, and it only brings pain and misery to others. Even those one loves will suffer, often the most, torn by the hurt inflicted by those who should care more for them._ ”

With a shudder, Nixe uttered, “You…you know, don’t you?”

“ _I do, Nixe._ ” The Luminon paused. “ _I truly apologize for intruding upon your deepest emotions. But it is those like you whom I must do all of this for. One who might fly free happily, if not for the shackles upon your wings from the flaws and sins of others. What I see is a world where those like yourself will never know the hurt and despair that has plagued your heart._ ”

With the Luminon’s presence so close to her, their words didn’t quite resonate through her being in the same way they had in their prior conversations. Yet the sincerity in their words was no less powerful as Nixe had felt before. She didn’t have a shred of doubt in her heart for the Luminon’s empathy.

“ _Nixe, I ask for your hand in bringing peace to all children of anima and ether. To free all mortal hearts within this place you call Garden City from their burdens. To defend the innocent from those overtaken by their inner darkness. To prevent those who do not understand from interfering. I ask you to aid me in bringing enlightenment._ ”

A world without sin, without evil… First Garden City, then what? The world? The Outsiders’ world, too? After all, just like the Luminon had said before, the invasion eight years ago would have never happened if not for dark, cruel thoughts…

But was it all about herself, her own desire? No…surely there were others like her. People who suffered from the failings of their loved ones, the people who were supposed to keep them safe from pain and hurt?

Yet all the inner debate in the world couldn’t change one simple fact. In a way, she’d already made her choice. She’d already betrayed the other heroines, attacked two of them. The line in the sand had already been drawn, and Dove had taken her stand opposite the heroines.

She didn’t want to fight them. But if that was what it would take to bring about the Luminon’s vision…

Lifting her head, taking in the purity of the spirits and world before her, Nixe gave her answer. “Yes. I’ll help you.”

A short silence filled the air. “ _In time, all children of anima and ether will understand what we must carry out. Even the ones who will oppose us._ ”

Their enemies… There were three of them, and only one of Nixe. And hadn’t there been five heroines who’d stopped the Outsider invasion? Would a fifth heroine join the others, against her and the Luminon?

“ _Nixe, please face me._ ”

Nixe turned, her eyes setting upon the shining form of the Luminon.

The being before her was almost familiar. The others of her kind had larger bodies, more muscular builds, rougher wings and plumage. The Luminon’s feathers were a pure white, smooth and delicate. Their pose, with the largest pair of wings upon their back folded over their shoulders and torso, exuded tranquility and majesty. The other smaller pairs of wings upon their head, waist, and ankles moved gently, as if in rhythm with a steady pulse. Her eyes were closed, and her beak was longer and more slender than other avalerions—more swan-like. She was far more graceful than the eagle-like or hawk-like avalerions Nixe had seen in Garden City.

“ _You will need greater strength to protect the innocent, and to prevent interference in their enlightenment. Open your heart to me, Nixe._ ”

Nixe wasn’t sure how to do that, but she thought about what she always pictured to transform: the bird-cage deep within her heart. She imagined that cage opening up further, as wide as it could.

The Luminon opened their eyes, golden orbs that flared with a greater brilliance than even the sun or the rest of Solis.

A moment later, that light was surging into Nixe’s being. Her body jerked off of the ground, warm radiance coursing through her body in waves. The first pulse expanded her feather-hair into a thick shoulder-length mane. The second and third grew the wings that formed her skirt, folding them further down her legs like a dress. Four quick, light pulses lengthened her gloves and the wings upon her boots.

The last three surges of power each made Nixe gasp from the sheer strength and intensity—as well as the white-hot streaks that burst from her back with each one. Even though she didn’t see them, she knew they were three pairs of great white wings—she could _feel_ the wings grazing each other, every single feather bristling together…

Her feet touched upon the shimmering grass once more. She flexed those wings, feeling them flapping gently. The ones that had adorned her garment before had merely been for show, for decoration. These ones…

Excitement flooded her heart, or maybe it was just the sheer power flowing through her. If the difference before had been like night and day, this was _becoming_ the very sun itself. If she had been a mere ugly duckling as her normal self, and a swam as her magical self, this was rebirth as a phoenix.

“ _With my gift,_ ” the Luminon spoke, their beak unmoving, “ _you may travel to and from my realm as you need, should you need to move without notice from your world. But your people must understand your purpose, Nixe. The children of anima and ether must know you as my messenger of enlightenment._ ”

They would know Dove as such, of course. If anyone in her life discovered this side of her, nothing good would come of it.

“ _Take flight now, and deliver my message._ ”

Though Nixe still wasn’t sure how to leave this place, there was only one thing she desired now. Her wings began to beat, soon fast and hard enough to launch her into the air, soaring into the silvery expanse above.

Nixe conjured her sword. The blade now shone with unearthly brilliance, and the wings adorning the hilt had grown longer and more ornate. Picturing the border between worlds as a veil of sorts, Nixe slashed before her, leaving a glowing tear that she plunged into. She emerged from the passage of light into a dark, starlit sky…over downtown Garden City.

Earth’s gravity returned upon her body, yet it didn’t hinder her flight at all. She soared through the air, all six wings flapping in rhythm. It took her two minutes to fly over the entire city. Next she dove down between buildings, weaving and twirling through the streets. She sensed surprise and amazement, as well as fear, from the streets below—from both humans and Outsiders.

…her task remained. Below, in the city, she sensed something she hadn’t noticed before. A nexus of swirling energies, within the walls behind the building those protesters had gathered in front of. The Outsider Embassy, Nixe realized. Beating her wings, Nixe soared high into the sky above that building.

= ~ = ~ = ~ = ~ =

Countless people saw the spark of light rising from deep within the heart of downtown, hovering above even the tallest skyscraper in Garden City.

The voice rang through the streets, clear as a bell, reaching the edge of Garden City with no less volume than what those below the figure heard.

“People of Garden City…”

A teenage girl tying her hair into pigtails with pink ribbons froze as the words echoed in her ears.

“I speak on behalf of the Luminon, to cleanse the chaos that lurks within our world, within our hearts.”

Another girl dropped the knife that she used to spread mayonnaise on her sandwich for tomorrow’s lunch.

“The monsters you witness in Garden City are born from within, reflections of the darkness which lies within all of our hearts.”

A third girl nearly knocked her laptop off of her desk as she bolted upright from her seat.

“The time will come when all shall be freed of the hatred and fear that plague ourselves and those we care for.”

A basketball ricocheted off the backboard and bounced away as a fourth teenage girl peered to the sky.

“I am Dove, messenger of the Luminon…protector of Garden City.”

With a flash of light, the white spark in the sky vanished.

= ~ = ~ = ~ = ~ =

As Nixe walked along Talbot Drive, she spotted the grey sedan in the driveway of her home. Her dad was back already? Her stomach twisting into a knot, Nixe raced to the front door. She tried the knob, then was forced to knock.

The door opened to a man in a blue dress shirt and black slacks, his beard short and his hair neat. “Jesus Christ, Nixe!” he uttered. “What were you doing out so late?”

“I…I was visiting a friend…”

“With all this Outsider nonsense going on?” her father hissed. A hand on her shoulder gently but firmly guided her inside. “I can’t believe your mother let you out this late. Straight to your room, Nixe!”

“Now hold on, Harold!” her mom spat, emerging from the living room. “She can take care of herself, you know.”

“Not with all of those m _onsters_ around!” her dad retorted. “Just because you can forget about them doesn’t mean I can let my daughter out late without worrying about her, Irene.”

“Don’t you even dare…”

Nixe took off her shoes, and received only another glance from the two before they resumed their squabbling. Once she reached her room, she left the door ajar—her dad didn’t like her closing it all the way.

Her parents kept going, only just audible from where Nixe sat on her bed. Maybe they’d calmed down a bit, maybe they were only just containing themselves. But this was just the start of it. It always was. How long would they last this time?

It wasn’t loud enough that music wouldn’t drown it out, and Nixe had homework to get to anyway. Just as she sat down at her desk, her dad opened the door. “Nixe, dear.”

“Yes, Dad?” she asked, pulling over her textbook.

“I’m sorry if I hurt your feelings about being out late,” he said, leaning against the doorway. “But with everything going on here, I’m just worried about you. What if you ended up getting hurt by one of those monsters?”

Nixe hoped the shudder in her stomach didn’t show on her face.

“Your mother…I know sometimes she doesn’t think about these things, but I’ve worried about you every day I was away on business.” He stepped further inside; Nixe wished he hadn’t dared to after spouting such garbage about “business”. “Especially after what happened at your school… I want you coming home every day on time. Do you understand?”

Holding back a sigh, Nixe nodded. “Yes, Dad.”

He stepped back. “You know I love you. Your mom does too. Even if things are complicated at times, we both want what’s best for you.”

Even if Nixe bubbled over within over him calling things “complicated”, she understood that his words were the truth. But just because they loved her didn’t mean they could see what was best for her. Best for each other. In the end, their flaws were all that defined their life together. And their daughter’s life.

“I know, Dad,” Nixe managed to force out.

With a weary smile, her dad inched out of her room. “I’m glad to be home again, dear.”

He walked away, without a word from Nixe. Her eyes returned to her homework, but her thoughts laid everywhere else. Her mission now. Her hope. Her enemies. And everything she knew about her one ally.

All Nixe could hope for was that having hope again, and everything that she would have to do for that hope, would be worth it. For herself, for her parents.

For everyone in Garden City.


	10. Pursuit

Ten minutes before lunch, Nixe felt the ripples through the air. Invisible echoes, just perceptible on the edge of her senses, their strength hinting at its distance.

Nixe didn't shift even an inch in her seat, and continued reading until the bell rang. Her stomach grumbled, but hunger wouldn't be a distraction for long. As she walked through the hallways, her eyes scanned the crowd of students chatting, gathering, moving. None of them seemed in a hurry or distressed in an unusual manner.

She headed into the first bathroom she crossed. Once the only other girl inside had left, she ducked into one of the stalls, closed the door behind her, and placed a hand to her chest.

The bird took flight, and light enveloped her body as it lifted from the floor. Energy pulsed through every inch of her body, forming her magical costume, her shining sword, and the three pairs of wings that spread out from her back, folding against the tight walls of the bathroom stall.

Before the radiance had faded completely, Nixe tightened her grip on her sword, and with a swift slash forged a tear of blinding light that she lunged into. Free to extend her wings, she glided through the vortex of light until another slash brought her back into her familiar world.

Her feet landed in snow, and trudged through the thick fluff to reach the edge of the rooftop. The sight in the park below, a simple square near the edge of downtown, evoked memories of what Nixe had seen of the Eden High incident. Roots and plants overgrew the park, verdant despite the wintry chill in the air and frost that coated the ground. Vines had crept over the iron fence around the park, ensnaring and even impaling vehicles on the road outside.

Those vines grew from a massive tree in the center of the park, with thick branches that lashed out at the five who fought the creature. Machina took aim with her hand-blaster, but a vine caught hold of the same hand, yanking her off of her feet. Ribbon dashed through a flurry of vines, parrying them with her ribbon baton as Machina caught the vine that grabbed her and blasted it away with a pulse of energy. Both Nimbus and Bounce kept their distance, flinging lightning bolts and aura-wreathed dodgeballs at the monster tree. Last was the almiran, the rabbit-Outsider who tried to weave through the whipping vines, only to be struck to the ground.

It wasn't too surprising for the heroines to be here already—this one wasn't far from Amaryllis High. At least a few of them showed up each time one of the monsters, what those five called "Withouts", awakened. They never gave up, never retreated until the Without was no longer a threat to others.

They were all too deserving of the title.

Nixe closed her eyes. She rehearsed in her mind. Her grips tightened upon her sword, her wings began to beat. The battle continued below; Ribbon weaved an ethereal ribbon through the air to tie up the tree-monster's limbs and let her allies have a clear shot at it. Her magical senses could discern that with ease.

When her eyes opened once more, her brow furrowed, and she dove from the rooftop down towards the monstrous tree.

The almiran glanced up to her, flinging herself out of the way just in time before Nixe brought her sword through a cluster of tangled vines and roots. She landed before two of the other heroines, neither of whom had a chance to speak or move a muscle before Nixe swung her blade again. An arc of light burst from her sword, cutting through more of the vines and striking the humanoid figure embedded within the bark. Branches flailed wildly, roots erupted from the ground, and all of its remaining vines came flying at Nixe.

She didn't flinch. Her sword in one hand, she slashed through each vine, multiple with most of her strokes, moving faster than a hummingbird's wings. Once all but a few had been destroyed, Nixe caught her grip with both hands before slashing in an X-pattern. The first stroke conjured a billowing whirlwind around her, filling the air with glistening snowflakes, then the second unleashed that raging storm in a barrage of razor gales that drove into the heart of the monster. As brilliant light wreathed her blade, Nixe flung herself forward with a mighty flap of her wings, driving straight at the humanoid outline against the tree to deliver one last slash that erupted into blinding white.

As the corona of her strike faded, so too did the figure of the Without, the branches and roots withering away to a mere husk of its former self. The last few extremities twinkled into sparkles, and what was left—a black-haired woman in a fluffy parka and snow-pants—collapsed onto the ground. An environmental activist, Nixe sensed, who'd been handed a newspaper by a friend only to spot the cover story about new oil-drilling projects.

Even if the furious scream behind her hadn't suddenly broken the silence in the air, Nixe had sensed the aura of the almiran charging at her. She hesitated, but not out of surprise.

She spun around, with a wave of her wings that unleashed a powerful gale that flung the almiran off of her feet. The rabbit-girl tumbled along the ground, her long ears flopping about. Despite crashing into a snow-covered hedge, her white garment and the spiralling horn atop her head didn't seem damaged by the impact.

The four heroines had gathered together, and Nimbus gritted her teeth as she turned back to Nixe. "No wonder you have trouble protecting the city from these Withouts," Nixe said, looking to the heroines over her shoulder with narrowed eyes, "having to protect one of your own allies from her own foolishness."

Nimbus thrust out her umbrella. "You take that back!"

Just as she snapped the umbrella open, Nixe lunged forward. Nimbus raised her umbrella like a shield as Nixe slashed—not to attack, but to create a tear into Solis. A split-second later, she emerged behind Nimbus, who noticed the flash of light behind her too late to respond to the blast from Nixe's sword.

As Nimbus crashed to the ground, Nixe sensed one of the heroines' ether flare up to her left. She waved her sinistral wings, deflecting Bounce's dodgeball back in her direction. The red-clad heroine, her costume resembling a high-school sports uniform, caught the dodgeball mid-jump. She almost threw it back in the same motion, but another radiant crescent from Nixe's sword slashed the dodgeball in half in Bounce's hands before bursting into light and feathers upon the heroine.

Bounce landed behind Machina, who braced her right arm. Ether surged within her palm, a green corona flickering in the air around her. Nixe forced a cold laugh before she said, "Put your silly little arm-cannon toy away. Unless you want the same reprisal your friends received." Machina's charged energy ebbed slightly, but remained at the ready.

Ribbon dashed between the two, holding her arms out to her sides. "Enough!"

Nixe lowered her sword. "Your friends attacked first. Don't forget that."

The lavender eyes behind the bow-shaped mask glanced to her injured allies. "Dove," she said, turning back, "you don't want the Withouts hurting people. Why are you helping the Luminon create them?"

"It is a lesson for humankind," Dove replied. She sensed the almiran rising up behind her. "The same darkness that drives these Withouts to such chaos and destruction lies within each of their hearts."

"But you're the ones causing all of this!" Ribbon's eyes glanced past Nixe. "You're taking people's friends and family away from them!"

"Their friends and family will know enlightenment soon as well. If they knew the peace that awaits them and this city, they would gladly give themselves to the Luminon!"

"No!" shouted Machina. The ether charging within her palm pulsed. "We won't let you or the Luminon keep doing this!"

"Then you'll have to stop us, won't you?" Nixe countered, letting a smirk spread over her face.

The almiran behind her started to focus her magic. Just before Nixe deemed it necessary to swat her down once more, Ribbon shouted, "Arriete, don't!" The gathered ether dissipated, and Ribbon's focus returned to Nixe. "Dove, please... You know this isn't right, I know you do!"

Nixe's grip upon her sword tightened. Ribbon flinched in response. But as simple as it would be to dismiss her pleading with force, there was no point in doing so. After all, they were no longer interfering in her work at this moment. "This _is_ right, Ribbon. For the good of all humankind and all Outsiders. And if you five continue to stand between me and our pursuit, then I will drive straight through you."

Ribbon tossed away her baton, the stick and streamer vanishing into sparkles. The hand that'd held her weapon reached out, not in preparation for some attack, but as if inviting Nixe's into hers. "Please, Dove!"

"Hmph!" Nixe made a point to turn away first, before she leaped into the air. With a slash of her sword, she cut open a tear between worlds in the sky, flying into the light of the Luminon's realm.

She landed upon the grass, the surrounding paradise already in focus around her. Throughout the heavenly landscape, numerous shimmering silhouettes resided—conversing without qualm with those different from themselves, playing games with others without a hint of resentment or narcissism, enjoying each other's company regardless of who they were or what they had once done.

Nixe let her sword fade away into nothing. In this place, there was no need for weapons. There was no conflict, no battle, no strife. None of the human weaknesses that provoked or encouraged such things existed in this place. No hate, no contempt, no anger...

Her shoulders slumped a little. Her arms loosened. Her head bowed a touch, her eyes closing but not shutting out any of the brilliance of Solis.

" _Do not let your resolve waver, Nixe._ "

...it would all be worth it. Letting the heroines interfere would only prolong the Luminon's work, allow more Withouts to awaken. She had to remain strong until then.

She had to be the enemy of the heroines.

Nixe lifted her head, her gaze setting upon the Luminon as they approached. " _You did well, Nixe. More might have suffered if you had not acted._ "

For a moment, Ribbon's words flashed into her mind...that it was _their_ doing that was responsible for the suffering. But she forced that thought out of her mind. "Of course. I swore to protect Garden City from the darkness within the hearts of its people."

" _Indeed. More have joined us here in Solis, freed from their mortal burdens. Their vessels remain in your world, soon to awaken and deliver strife upon others. Your vigilance is vital._ "

If Nixe could have, she would have dealt with each and every Without that awakened. But sometimes she just couldn't slip away. With her dad home, disappearing late at night was much more difficult. He'd nearly caught on once, but she'd convinced him that she'd been in the bathroom. At least the heroines were there to fight the Withouts when she couldn't...

Her gaze returned to the Luminon, prompting them to continue. " _It is fortunate that you have come to me. I have a task for you. A message to divine._ "

Nixe nodded. "What is it?"

" _The ones who oppose us. Those who humankind know as 'heroines'. The humans like you, who bear the glint of magic within their anima._ "

"What about them?"

" _Like you, they were once ordinary humans. Have you crossed paths with them as their true selves?_ "

Nixe shook her head. "I don't know. They must be high-school students too, but I don't know who any of them are. They might go to other schools, too." All she knew was that Ribbon had been an Eden High student, but Nixe had no idea what school she might have been transferred to after the incident.

" _As I know your true heart, Nixe, I wish to understand the hearts of those who oppose us._ "

"You can't sense them? Even when we fight?"

" _In their ether forms, their hearts are shielded from my sight. Even yours is obscured to me, as you are now. I wish to know them as I know you, and for this, you must learn their true selves._ "

Nixe managed to conceal her inner reaction to such an idea. It was one thing for them to be enemies as their magical selves, completely unaware of each other in normal life. But to involve their true selves in all of this? She hadn't wanted them to know who she was, even before she'd drawn the line between them...

" _Nixe, we must know those who seek to deny your people of enlightenment. I ask that you carry out this task._ "

She'd trusted the Luminon's intentions so far, after all. "I'll try my best."

" _Thank you, Nixe. The time of enlightenment for all draws ever nearer. The sooner you accomplish this task, the sooner that time shall come._ "

And the sooner that came, the sooner everything they'd done for enlightenment would be worth it. "I'll take my leave now."

Nixe stepped back before conjuring a portal with her sword. She soared through the tear, emerging in an alleyway not far from Amaryllis High. After a quick check to ensure no one would see her, she transformed back to her normal self, the unassuming teenager clad in a white sweater and beige slacks.

A crisp wind enveloped Nixe in winter's chill, quickly sinking into her skin. She gasped; it was all too easy to forget how cold winter was when her magical self wasn't affected by it as her flesh-and-blood self was. She hurried through the slush that coated the sidewalks—at least she had a good pair of boots.

Just before she hurried into one of Amaryllis High's back entrances, Nixe froze with her hand inches from the handle. Other students would see her walking in from the cold in just a sweater. Wouldn't they wonder what she'd gone outside for? If they knew that there had been a Without attack, would they suspect her as one of the heroines? For all she knew, the heroines themselves were keeping watch within for anyone suspicious. They could have been right behind her, about to slip back into their normal lives just like her.

How would she even figure out who any of the heroines were?

Another gale washed over her, and the stinging cold forced Nixe's hand. As she hurried into the school, a voice asked, "Were you out there without a coat?"

She nearly jumped—and would have had it been a female voice. The man standing near the doors must have been one of the teachers, one Nixe didn't know. "Oh..." she started, glancing away for a moment. What could she say? "I forgot something this morning, so my dad was just dropping it off for me." With a shrug and a fake smile, Nixe added, "Should have grabbed my coat, anyway."

She didn't bother waiting to see if the teacher bought her story. Nixe hurried out of the stairwell, off to her next class. Judging by most of the seats being occupied and the teacher already speaking before the class, she was late. She sighed inside, and hoped she could retell her excuse a bit more convincingly.

= ~ = ~ = ~ = ~ =

When Nixe trudged up the walkway to her front door after school, her dad's car had yet to reappear in the driveway. Her mom didn't greet her as she took off her boots; Nixe spotted two bottles on the coffee table on her way to her room.

She didn't hear the car pull in, her focus too fixed on her homework, but the slam of the front door made her stomach jump. Her dad had a habit for that.

While she couldn't make out the words, Nixe did hear her father's raised tone. Last night, it'd been her mom spilling beer on the carpet, not that it was free from stains he'd left over the years. The night before, her mom exploded at him for not cleaning out the coffee machine that morning. Those moments had grown more common once more, the obvious signs that both of them had all but stopped caring, dropped any pretence of respect for each other.

Her mom's raised voice answered in turn, and Nixe took that as her cue to put in her earphones. Her tablet took long enough to start up that Nixe overheard her mother shouting her name at her father, but she didn't catch the context.

By the time rock music drowned out their growing argument, Nixe had lost all interest in her homework. It wasn't as if she had any career goals in mind, any plans for the future other than flying free as soon as possible. And if everything the Luminon desired came to fruition, would her homework really matter?

She shut her textbook, sighing. Nixe threw herself onto her bed, nestling her head in her bundled blankets to further isolate herself from the usual noise.

All that really mattered was saving her parents, and everyone else in Garden City, from themselves.


	11. Escape

The next Tuesday morning, Nixe left her home as if nothing was out of the ordinary. A light dusting of snowflakes drifted down from the gloomy sky. Her boots left a new set of solitary tracks upon the well-worn layer of white upon the sidewalk. She was just another student heading to school, or at least she hoped she looked the part.

The past three months hadn't dragged on, as Nixe's life was wont to do. Her parents still fought, she still drifted through her classes, and she still didn't say a word to the other students at her bus stop. Yet as she boarded the bus and took a seat, Nixe felt a sense of purpose. Of duty. That something she was doing mattered, was building up to something worthwhile.

That still didn't ease the pit that formed in her stomach as she pondered her task from the Luminon. Her enemies were the heroines, girls with powers like her own. But it wasn't easy to ignore that begind their masks and magic, they were girls like herself. Whoever Ribbon and Nimbus were, they had met at Amaryllis High—for all she knew, one of them was on the bus with her right now.

Maybe they already knew who Dove was behind her mask. Would they act against her if they knew for certain? Or were they better than bringing Nixe's true self into their conflict?

...why wasn't the Luminon better than that?

= ~ = ~ = ~ = ~ =

There was always relief at the end of a school day when Nixe didn't sense the awakening of a Without...or the opening of one of the Luminon's portals. Not that such couldn't happen later in the evening, or even in the middle of the night, but it meant not having to rush as soon as the bell rang or needing an excuse for being late to class.

No excuses would sit with her father for not being home on time, though. But even if she took the bus home, he didn't arrive until half an hour or so after her. He had grounded her the two times she didn't get home before him, but her mother didn't say a word if Nixe slipped in a minute before his car pulled into the driveway.

As she left Amaryllis High, she ignored her bus, heading down the sidewalk in her usual direction. For once, winter seemed more defined by the fluffy flakes gliding down from the sky instead of the dreary sludge growing on the roads and sidewalk. Stopping at the corner, Nixe gazed up to the sky. To soar through the air in such weather, to look upon the city draped in snow...

Of course, she was standing in people's way. Nixe started away from the intersection, but couldn't draw her eyes away from the sky—

—until she collided with someone. The other person fell to the sidewalk with a soft noise, not quite an "oof". "Oh my gosh!" Nixe gasped, whipping her gaze downward. "I'm so sorry! I-I wasn't looking where I was going..."

The woman she'd knocked over was clad in a long dark coat, with a white shawl over head head and down her back. Its size made Nixe wonder what kind of hairstyle she had underneath...until she noticed the pink tone of the woman's slender, pointed fingers that took Nixe's outstretched hand.

As the woman stood, her eyes met Nixe's. They were larger than a human's, with simple yellow circles within creamy-coloured sclera—though Nixe recalled the _other_ pair of eyes she'd seen upon an Outsider like her. Her face was the same pinkish tone, framed by green hair poking out around the edges of her shawl. She brushed snow off of her coat and said, "I see. This season is a marvellous sight, is it not?"

Nodding, Nixe said, "Y-yeah, I suppose..."

Before she could hurry on her way, the Outsider said, "Have we crossed paths before? You are familiar."

Nixe's eyes shifted away as she recalled that day, and her immediate reaction to the Outsider she'd met. Could this woman be the same Outsider? Why would they remember Nixe, of all people? There wasn't anything special about her—or so she hoped the Outsider thought so. "...m-maybe..."

The Outsider put her hands together upon her chest. "Yes, I remember you now. You were quite startled by my appearance."

 _Startled_ wasn't the kindest word for it. "I'm...sorry about that..."

"It is not uncommon for humans to be startled by our appearance, I have noticed. But sometimes even apprehension is followed by curiosity."

Perhaps Nixe misinterpreted her words, but when the Outsider said _our_ , could she also mean...? Before Nixe could reply, the Outsider said, "It is a daily custom of mine to partake of the delicacies of that café across the street. Would you like to join me today?"

That colourful one on the corner? Nixe glanced away. "Ummm..."

"If you have other plans, I understand. It would be my treat, as I believe your people say. Though we would both share in the treat, so it would not be mine alone." The Outsider fiddled the first fingers of her hands. "I do not understand some of your people's sayings."

"Well..." Nixe wouldn't have accepted, but perhaps she owed it to the Outsider over how rudely she'd acted the first time they'd met. "Okay. I didn't have any plans, anyway."

"That is delightful. Your agreement, not your absence of other plans. Please, come with me."

They crossed both ways across the intersection, arriving before the Café de la Crème—the name written on the front door in elegant font. The Outsider held the door open for Nixe, and she ventured inside.

Nixe couldn't help but to feel a little giddy at the interior of the café. The tables were a bit close together, but there weren't enough people within to make it claustrophobic rather than cozy. Cocoa, cinnamon, and coffee aromas flooded out from behind the counter, where all kinds of sweets and cakes were on display in glass cases. Chocolate shades accented the pale-pink walls, with dancing outlines of cutesy lions, dogs, squirrels, ponies, bunnies, and cats prancing about the wallpaper.

Nixe followed the Outsider to a table in the back corner. The Outsider pulled out a chair for Nixe before sitting down herself. Nixe glanced over the rest of the café, to the other customers enjoying their treats and drinks and each other's company, feeling her stomach twist as she took her seat.

One of two women in cute pink maid-like dresses walked over. "Welcome, Anise!" the waitress said with a wide smile. "And hello to your friend!"

"Hello," the Outsider said. She pulled off her shawl, and as she folded it and placed it neatly upon the table, Nixe fixated upon the giant caterpillar latched atop her head. The grey-blue creature moved only just enough that it looked alive, not even aware of its surroundings. Was it looking at Nixe through those large red eyes?

"Forgive me," Anise said, startling Nixe out of her stare, "but I have yet to ask your name."

Anise was being so kind to her, inviting her for this despite the poor first impression and Nixe's carelessness earlier. Yet telling Anise her name...if she'd been able to recall their brief encounter three months ago, would she forget Nixe's name? Especially if she might have known Nixe wasn't just an ordinary girl?

"Is something wrong? Have I caused offense?"

Nixe straightened herself up. Any sort of appetite for sweets would be hard to muster, but she could at least give an answer. "My name is Nixe. I'm sorry I didn't introduce myself earlier." Maybe she should have given a false name to the Outsider—and that thought immediately provoked a pang of disgust towards herself.

"My name is Anise. My kind are called odonae in your world."

The waitress handed Nixe a simple card. "Here's a menu for you, ma'am. And you'll be having your usual, Anise?"

"Yes. The cinnamon and chocolate tart, with hot cocoa. What would you like, Nixe?"

Nixe scanned the menu. Everything on it sounded absolutely delectable; it'd be hard enough to pick even if she was paying for it herself. "I'll just have the chocolate macarons, please."

"Would you not like a drink with your treat?"

"It's fine..."

"Please, Nixe. You are my guest."

She still wondered why. Was she being a rude guest by refusing? "Okay, I'll have...the sweet tea."

The waitress left the two, but Nixe's stare didn't return to Anise. The least she could do was to be pleasant company...

"Is it my appearance that still causes you unease?"

Nixe snapped her eyes back to Anise. "Oh no, I promise..." Upon her eyes settling atop Anise's head, she couldn't deny to herself how creepy the idea of having a giant bug on top of one's head was, having its stubby legs grabbing onto her temples and down her back...how did it stay attached to her, anyway? What _was_ it?

"If you are curious, please ask."

Though Anise's lips didn't quite curl into a smile, her hands were together against her chest, in a manner that didn't seem negative towards Nixe. The least Nixe could do was try to be friendly, so she took the bait. "Is it...part of you, or...?"

"It is not. It is a being of its own. In your language, it is known as a dream-eater."

Nothing Nixe could imagine with that name sounded good. "Wh-what does it do?"

Anise's hands lowered to the table. "It protects us from grim memories."

The slightly-hushed tone and choice of words immediately brought Nixe's mission to her mind. Before she could inquire further, the waitress arrived with their treats. As Nixe looked to her tea and macarons, Anise said, "If you wish to know more, Nixe, I can explain."

"I...I don't want to impose on you..." Nixe replied, staring at her treats. The two sandwiches had fluffy chocolate cream between them and white chocolate drizzled over them. Despite her anxieties, her appetite was indeed enticed.

Before she took one, she glanced back to Anise. "O-okay. If it's not unpleasant to talk about...what did you mean by 'grim memories'?"

The dream-eater twitched atop Anise's head. Thin stalks upon its head perked up. "Is-is something wrong?" Nixe asked, almost dropping her macaron.

"It is fine," Anise replied, though the dream-eater still looked agitated. "Long ago, there were those among my kind who committed a terrible act. And in turn, others placed a curse upon our people for time eternal. We would always know the atrocity our people had carried out, the horror we had wrought."

Nixe gasped. Her macaron tumbled onto her plate. "That's horrible!"

"It left many burdened with guilt and despair. Another people of our world created the dream-eaters for us, to save us from our curse. During our waking moments, the dream-eaters consume those thoughts, freeing us from our burden."

Shaking her head, Nixe said, "But why? Why would anyone think that was fair to do to your entire people?" In the back of her head, Nixe wondered if _fair_ had ever been considered in such a terrible thing.

"It is said by our people that, by never being able to forget the past, we would never commit the same terror again."

Nixe still shook her head. Humans certainly believed that...not that it had stopped them from repeating the mistakes of the past. But going that far?

Anise cut herself a small piece of her tart; for a moment, Nixe wondered if the dream-eater would get a piece too. Rather than dwell on what she'd just learned, Nixe took a bite of one of her macarons. It was delicious, sweet, with a rich cocoa flavour; she couldn't help but to let out a muffled "Mmmm!"

As she chewed her macaron, other thoughts flooded her mind, enough to prompt Nixe to set down her treat. "Is something wrong?" asked Anise, her fork lowering from her mouth. "I am sorry if our conversation has spoiled your appetite."

Nixe shook her head. "I should be the one apologizing. How I'd reacted that day, when I first saw you..."

The odona ate another piece of her tart before responding. "It is understandable, Nixe. I do not blame humans for being unnerved by my appearance. With all that is unfolding now in your world, I am afraid that humans have good reason to be distrustful of magical beings."

To hear such a sentiment expressed by an Outsider made Nixe twinge. "No, they don't. It's not your people's fault, what's going on."

"But how could humans understand what we ourselves do not? It is a magical crisis that remains mysterious, even to those of our world. I cannot blame humans for their fear and suspicion."

If only Nixe—or Dove—could tell the world that the Outsiders weren't to blame...but would they even believe her? "But...you were willing to invite me here today."

Anise took a delicate sip of her cocoa. "Fear and distrust are not simple to overcome, and I doubt those of my world will ever be accepted by all in your world. All I can do is reach out to those willing to welcome us, one heart at a time."

Nixe was about to take another bite of her macaron, but Anise's words made her freeze up. Closing her eyes and setting her treat down, Nixe said, "I...I don't think I deserve your generosity, Anise. I'm sorry..."

"Nixe, I do not believe you have a cold heart."

All the things she said and did to the other heroines flashed through her mind. "I don't know..."

"Is something wrong, Nixe?"

She nodded. "It's not you, I promise. It's...personal."

"Is there not another you can confide in? Friends, or your elders?"

Did Anise mean her parents? That wasn't an option, for obvious reasons. "No, not really."

"Then perhaps it would be best to set aside those thoughts, to let your heart free for even a few minutes, so you may renew your strength to carry the burden once more."

Was that so easy to do, though? When it left such a lingering mark on every aspect of Nixe's life, it seemed? If only she did have an escape...like that day she'd first ran into Anise, that day she'd been able to cast aside her troubles as Nixe Fulton and fly free as Dove.

But now Dove was just as much part of it as Nixe herself.

"I would be willing to provide an ear if it would help you."

Anise's voice snapped Nixe out of her thoughts. "Thank you for the offer," Nixe said, looking to her, "but...it's complicated. But I appreciate your empathy." After a nibble of her delectable macaron, Nixe added, "Oh, and it's 'lend an ear', by the way."

The odona nodded and smiled at the correction.

= ~ = ~ = ~ = ~ =

The rest of their time together went to more pleasant topics: chocolate, the languages of humankind, and the nature of day and night and seasons in the human world. When Nixe realized how late it was getting, she rose from her seat, trying to pay for her share; Anise insisted that it was still "my treat, except for you."

After they bid farewell outside the café, Nixe watched her walk away. As she wrapped her shawl over the dream-eater, people she passed by stared and stepped away from her. Such a kind person...and people were still freaked out by her.

What would it be like to have that constant reminder of something terrible that one wasn't even part of? Was having that creature atop her head any different? Was it, in the mind of whoever had placed that curse upon the odonae, the same as what the Luminon sought?

No, Nixe thought, shaking her head as she departed in the opposite direction. What the Luminon wanted was to _free_ people from darkness, not trap them in such. The kind of darkness that drove someone to condemn an entire people for such a terrible fate.

Perhaps the time would come that Anise would be freed from that fate. That she wouldn't have to wonder which humans could be swayed from their distrust and which were too see in their ways, adamant on keeping the light of reason out.

Nixe walked into a nearby alleyway, finding a fence around a fire escape that provided excellent concealment for letting the bird out of its cage. With a slash of her sword, she formed a portal into Solis and soared through.

All the people burdened by their own darknesses, by the darknesses of others...

Nixe emerged into her bedroom, transforming back to her normal self as the portal closed. Her snow-covered boots soaked her carpet; she quickly took them off and crept over to the front door to put them and her coat away. Her mom, still in the living room, didn't notice at all. The bottles on the coffee table—more than yesterday's count—said more than enough.

If only, like Anise suggested, she had some kind of escape. But her mission was too important. For Anise, for every Outsider and human in Garden City.

And in the end, for her masked adversaries too, whoever they truly were.


	12. Suspicion

The next Thursday morning greeted Nixe with sunny skies but harsh winds. All the magic in the world couldn't save her from shivering as she trudged along the sidewalks to her bus stop.

She scanned the gathered students at the corner, looking over the girls in the group. Could any of them be the heroines? For all she knew, her adversaries had been so close all along. Were there any features that would give them away? Their hairstyles, or anything they wore? Nixe inched closer in, trying to eavesdrop on their conversations.

Before she could make out anything they chatted about, the sound of slowing wheels drowned out their words. The bus had arrived, and the conversations ceased as the other kids entered the bus. Most of them would continue on board, but she wouldn't be able to hear any of them.

The last thing Nixe wanted was to appear suspicious, and so she joined the others, taking a seat by herself as usual.

= ~ = ~ = ~ = ~ =

After the bell rang at the end of her second class, Nixe headed down to the cafeteria, settling herself at the end of a long table as the rest of the student body filled the hall. Nixe watched every girl that passed by, while pretending to size up her sandwich.

She closed her eyes as she chewed, picturing the four heroines in her mind. Ribbon was probably some cutesy, happy-go-lucky girl. Machina might have been a bit of a nerd; was her visor a replacement for glasses? She'd never noticed anyone in a raincoat reminiscent of Nimbus's costume, and as for Bounce—

Just as she thought of that fourth heroine, her eyes widened at the sound of a word coming from the girls next to her. They'd been talking to each other, of course not to Nixe, but she'd made out one word through the din of the numerous conversations all around. "Excuse me," Nixe asked the two closest girls, "did you just say 'dodgeball'?"

While one of the girls shot Nixe a dirty look, one that made her stomach twinge and an apology for butting in rise to her tongue, the other girl said, "Oh, the latest match in the district dodgeball finals is after school tomorrow."

"They _did_ mention it this morning on the PA," the other girl said, rolling her eyes.

It had been in the morning announcements, Nixe recalled, but she hadn't been thinking about the heroines then. School sports had never been something Nixe had cared about; she hadn't had any real school spirit for Eden High to begin with. "Which team? Amaryllis's, or Eden High?"

"It's Amaryllis vs. Sycamore," said the second girl, in the same disdainful tone.

"Does Eden High even have a team still?" asked the first girl. "Didn't all the students who went there get split up across the city?"

"Maybe they're playing with whatever school they went to. What does it matter?"

Nixe turned her attention away. Amaryllis High proudly displayed the school's trophy case down the corridor from the Principal's office; Nixe usually passed by it on her way to or from one of her classes. The banners above the display read _Amaryllis Spirit – Indomitable!_ , in a white font framed by black borders, against the school colour...crimson.

The same shade of crimson as Bounce's magical outfit.

She had to be a member of Amaryllis High's dodgeball team. It'd explain the nature of her powers, just as Nixe's own were inspired by birds.

Then she had to see that game. Perhaps that'd narrow it down. Bounce was the one of the four she knew the least—she'd only joined the other heroines after Nixe's choice against them—but her style of play probably reflected in her magical self's movements. If she could figure out which player _played_ the most like Bounce...

Would the other heroines be there, to support their friend? Or were they only acquaintances when it came to protecting Garden City?

It didn't matter. Nixe Fulton would be just another face in the crowd, just another student watching the game. No one would have any reason to suspect she was there for any other reason.

At least, she hoped so.

= ~ = ~ = ~ = ~ =

"Absolutely not!"

"But Dad," Nixe said, staring at her father across the dinner table, "I told my friend on the team that I would try to be there to watch."

"You'd be late for dinner," her father replied, "and besides, I don't want you downtown by yourself. You know there was another one of those monsters going crazy just a few days ago!"

 _Monsters_ was what her dad had always called the Outsiders. And Nixe knew that it hadn't been one of them who'd been taken over by their inner darkness. But her father didn't like to be corrected—not that Nixe _could_ know enough to correct him.

"She's taken the public buses home a few nights," her mom said, "after being out with friends. She'll be fi—"

"Just because you can forget about what's going on in this city doesn't mean it's safe out there for our daughter!"

"Shut up, Harold!" her mother snapped, an inch away from springing up from her seat. "You're treating her like a helpless little girl!"

"And what is she supposed to do if some monster smashes the bus she's on?" her father hissed. "If something happens downtown while she's there? I'm not letting my daughter get hurt just because she wants to watch some stupid game!"

Her mother slumped back into her chair, clearly cowed by her father's raised voice. Not a word followed from Nixe's dad; perhaps he figured he'd gotten the point across. But there'd be plenty of words tonight, Nixe was sure of it. They'd already reached the point of near-nightly fights already. It probably wouldn't be long until another "business trip"...

...but hopefully not much longer until she didn't have to put up with it all.

= ~ = ~ = ~ = ~ =

When Nixe left for school on Friday morning, her dad reminded her to be home on time. She promised him she would be.

If she was, that would be lucky. If she wasn't...well, getting grounded would only be a minor hurdle to overcome.

This morning, Nixe paid attention to the announcements, which included a mention of the dodgeball match starting after the final class. Members of the sports teams were often absent for the last class, or left partway through, so if anyone was missing...

When the last bell of the day rang, Nixe left behind her tote bag in her shared locker. The less people had to identify her by, the better...that, and her homework seemed so inconsequential compared to her task.

The bleachers in the gymnasium were half-full of students and staff as Nixe took a seat near the top. Both teams assembled on the court, with the Amaryllis High team in crimson and the Sycamore students in dark-green. What had Eden High's sports colour been? Nixe couldn't recall...it felt like an entire lifetime ago.

The referee blew the whistle to start the game, and members from each side bolted for the red balls placed on the center line. Shots flew from side to side, with struck players heading for the back of the other team's side, waiting for an errant ball to roll their way.

At first, Nixe watched the members of the Amaryllis team, hoping to single out Bounce. One girl proved herself talented at deflecting thrown balls with her own, though two flying her way proved too much. Another girl tended to make dramatic dashing shots, as if trying to draw the other team's attention more than making accurate throws. A third player on the Amaryllis side managed surprising dodges, ones that reminded Nixe of Bounce's agility...but was she that nimble as her normal self?

Her pulse raced each time a ball narrowly missed one of the Amaryllis girls, jumped each time they landed one of their shots. Nixe even leaned forward in her seat when the crimson side was outnumbers 2-5 by the greens, and managed to take out two of their opponents before a swift barrage won the round for Sycamore.

As the players shook hands and retreated to their sides for a huddle, Nixe remembered why she was here to begin with. Did she have a hunch whom might be the heroine? Not yet...she needed to pay more attention. Then again, whoever Bounce was might not have been playing tonight. Maybe the normal Bounce wasn't even one of the more spectacular players on the team.

After a minute, the second round began, with both teams scrambling for the balls and launching their opening salvos. This time, the Amaryllis team took an early lead, following a ricocheting shot that hit two Sycamore players and provoked a round of cheers from the audience. Nixe thought back to Gym class in elementary school; she'd never managed anything notable playing dodgeball, She couldn't help but to be impressed, a little envious even. If only she had some kind of talent...

That girl with the flashy movements would be Nixe's first guess. The confidence, the skill. Her movements also seemed the most spirited, though perhaps that was just her dramatic style of play. Something about her did give Nixe the impression that her impression was wrong, but none of the other players seemed the sort.

That flashy girl's swift throw led the last Sycamore player into a side-hop—and into the path of another thrown ball. The audience applauded, with only a smidgen more cheer than for Sycamore's winning round. Nixe glanced to the clock—almost twenty minutes thus far. If this was best-of-five, she probably wouldn't be home on time...

As both teams returned to their sides, the gym teacher stepped out and declared, "Ladies and gentlemen, the Amaryllis Cheer Team!"

The audience's own cheer welcomed the three girls who ran out into the center of the gym. All three wore colourful outfits, primarily crimson with blue and yellow accents. Two of them hopped and skipped with bright pom-poms, while the third ran out with...

...with a streamer baton.

Nixe leaned forward as the Cheer Team chanted in perfect harmony, " _T-E-A-M! Win as one, go get 'em! W-O-R-K! Stick together, we'll win the day!_ "

While the pom-pom girls pranced and waved about, the blonde girl with the ribbon baton twirled and danced in a more stationary fashion. Even her ribbon was yellow, reminiscent of Ribbon's outfit.

The rest of the song slipped past Nixe, even as the audience and both teams began to sing and clap along. Both pom-pom girls landed with the splits, while the ribbon girl tossed her baton nearly up to the ceiling, then caught it and twirled it around her in one last flourish before bowing. Another wave of applause filled the gymnasium and the three girls dashed off of the court, one even cartwheeling as she followed the others.

Shortly after the third round began, the two pom-pom girls sat in front of Nixe...but the blonde ribbon-twirling girl wasn't with them. Nixe didn't see her anywhere. Could one of Eden High's cheerleaders have joined Amaryllis's cheer team? And was that the inspiration behind Ribbon's magical self?

Nixe left her seat and the gymnasium. One possibility crossed her mind. Her suspicion was confirmed at the nearest bathroom, where the girl stepped out just as Nixe approached.

The blonde girl flashed Nixe a smile, one that reminded Nixe of the friendly smiles Ribbon had shown...so long ago. Or maybe Nixe couldn't remember that face so clearly.

The girl continued on past her. Nixe had to say something. Anything that might confirm or dismiss this girl. But what could she say that could answer all of her questions—without giving this girl some of her own?

A lump grew in Nixe's throat with each passing second, but Nixe swallowed it down. Taking a deep breath, Nixe turned to the girl now maybe twenty feet down the hall and called, "Hey, nice show!"

The girl came to a stop, looking over her shoulder. "Oh, thanks!" she replied, in a voice that didn't sound much like Ribbon's.

"How much practice have you had with that baton?" Nixe asked, walking closer.

"Oh, I picked it up on my first year here."

Her first year here at Amaryllis? Then...it couldn't be her.

The blonde girl's eyes darted between Nixe and the nearby doors. "T-thanks for your compliment," the girl said, "but I'll be getting back to the game!"

"Oh, o..." Nixe couldn't finish her sentence, and simply nodded instead.

Taking a slow step backwards, the girl quickly turned around and hurried into the gym. Nixe stood still, letting it all sink in before letting her shoulders slump.

Just as she started towards the gym doors, a thought brought her to a stop.

If that _had_ been Ribbon...

...her first clue had been the different voice...

...would Ribbon recognize _her_ in turn?

Nixe hadn't been paying much attention, but she hadn't noticed anyone else leaving the gym during the match. What if...she'd seemed suspicious herself in doing so?

What if that girl who'd performed with the streamer baton told her friends about the weird girl who'd talked to her in the hall?

What if that girl knew Nixe from a class they shared? Just because Nixe didn't pay any mind to the other students didn't mean they wouldn't know her name, know her face, wonder what her deal was...

Maybe it was obvious to everyone around Nixe that there was something up with her. Had her behaviour in class changed since then? Was her demeanour different ever since becoming the Luminon's messenger? Her grades had remained above-average, but anything about her schoolwork tipped them off?

Or maybe...maybe the heroines already had her figured out?

"Miss Fulton?"

She nearly screamed, just from the voice sounding female. When she turned around, she realized it was a woman's rather than a teenager's—her English teacher from the previous semester. "Were you just coming back from the washroom?" she asked, one eyebrow raised.

All Nixe could do at first was nod, and only because there was a kernel of truth in it. "I...I didn't want to interrupt the game..."

"I'm sure you won't distract the players." The teacher slipped past her, then quietly shoved on the push-bar. "Coming?"

Nixe didn't want to go back in there, didn't want the blonde girl from the cheer team to see her again. She especially didn't want whichever player the heroine Bounce might have been to notice her curiously-timed return. But wandering off midway through the match might cause questions among the faculty. "Y-yeah," Nixe answered n a hushed tone.

She squeezed into the gym, returning to her seat. As the dodgeball match before her continued, Nixe couldn't focus enough on individual players, to their movements and skills, to the momentum of the round or the score of each team. She didn't think about who on Amaryllis High's side might be Bounce.

Instead, her mind wallowed in her fear that she might have sabotaged her own mission, rather than making any progress whatsoever with it.


	13. Monsters

Just after one in the morning, Nixe's eyes sprang open.

Her head spun as she pulled herself out from beneath her blankets, forcing herself to her feet. Though it felt like her eyes might not open again, Nixe needed to shut off the rest of the world to see the bird in its cage, drowsily plucking itself up before taking flight.

Lethargy gave way to brimming energy, limitless stamina, and raw power. Her dazed senses awakened, and her magical ones instantly sensed which direction the echoes that had roused her from sleep came from, even a good idea of how far away from her its source was. With a flash of her sword, Nixe flung herself into the portal through Solis.

She emerged from a tear over a downtown block, sensing the Without somewhere below her. Her wings guided her down into an alleyway, her prey somewhere within.

Once Nixe landed, the monster turned to face her, its orange eyes fixating upon Nixe. The street laid behind the creature, what looked like a giant rust-coloured serpent, at least twenty feet long and covered with jagged-looking fur. As Nixe raised her sword, the beast opened its fox-like wide, letting out a shriek with such raw force that the air rippled around Nixe and garbage cans scattered everywhere.

She stood her ground and swung out her sword, her simple stroke unleashing a magical slash that cleaved through the wave of force from the Without and launched the monster into the middle of the street. Cars skidded to a halt, and once-unaware civilians started fleeing in panic.

Before the Without could recover, Nixe dashed forward, leaping into the air. Her beating wings keeping her aloft, she conjured swirling winds about her with strokes of her sword that converged around her blade. Taking her weapon in both hands, Nixe aimed it at the Without, releasing a blinding beam enveloped by a vicious tornado at the monster.

A burst of light erupted upon impact. She landed, and lowered her sword as the glow faded. The Outsider's monstrous form had begun to fade away into light, leaving a much smaller creature, perhaps only five feet long. Its head still bore vulpine features, though its fur was a pale yellow, with small paws on stubby limbs near the front of its long body. Nixe closed her eyes, gazing into the ether of the motionless Outsider. It hadn't been a very strong being; that much was clear from how little of a fight its Without form had put up. One of their parents had supported the invasion of the human world eight years ago, and was thus prohibited from ever entering the human world, despite their regrets. This Outsider had been reminded of their parent's shame every time they witnessed the wonders of Earth, the things they wished they could share—

"You!"

Her focus had been on the Outsider before her, but the voice alerted her to one drawing rapidly closer. Their cry had come too early, and by the time they and their ether-veiled fist reached Nixe, she was already prepared—and knew exactly who it was.

Nixe weaved out of the way as she turned to face the rabbit-Outsider, their fist missing her by inches. She dodged the next swift punch, then the ones that followed. Compared to the heroines she tried to assist, the almiran would have been outmatched by any one of them—let alone Nixe.

After her barrage, the rabbit-Outsider hopped back and swished her ears. A puff of grey smoke erupted around her, with two of her launching out at Nixe. The first threw her fist towards Nixe's face, but Nixe didn't move an inch as the illusion passed through her body. She raised her sword for the second's strike, blocking the almiran's punch and releasing a pulse of ether from her black that flung the Outsider back.

The almiran pushed herself back up. "I will not fall to you!" she shouted. "I will not let you keep terrorizing the humans of Garden City! I am Arriete, Outsider heroine of Garden City!"

The almiran attacked once more, just as ineffectively. Nixe weaved away from the blows, her eyes closed, opening them into a narrowed glare once she'd gathered her composure. "You're too weak to fight the Withouts. You're going to get yourself—and _others_ —hurt."

"It doesn't matter how strong I am!" Arriete conjured another phantom double, and Nixe began to avoid its attacks as well, just because she could. "The five of us together will protect Garden City!"

"They realize it too. That you're only getting in their way." The heroines probably were concerned about the almiran, but for more sincere reasons.

"No!" snarled the almiran, throwing a more fierce punch—which Nixe still casually avoided. "I am their ally! I fight with the Glints on behalf of every Outsider that cannot—that will not!"

Nixe jumped back, and the almiran stood her ground. "What do you mean by that?"

Arriete's ears flopped backwards as she clenched her paw-like hands. The rabbit-like Outsider couldn't possibly pull off a ferocious, intimidating look. "They are too scared of frightening humans, of making them believe we have an army in your world! They demand we leave the Withouts to the Glints, and refuse to stop you!"

Nixe forced a smirk. To think that people both blamed the Outsiders...and would be too paranoid to accept their help. Staring at the almiran, Nixe asked, "What are you waiting for?"

Energy welled within the rabbit-Outsider, though with little focus. Not that it was much power anyway, compared to Nixe's usual fights. "I will not let you leave here! I will stop you once and for all! I will stop you and show all the humans of Garden City that we are not monsters!"

"Is this why you're throwing yourself into danger like this?" Arriete had to realize she was outmatched. Did she expect any mercy from Nixe? Or did she and the heroines think less of Nixe than that?

"As long as you and your 'Luminon' threaten everyone here, I will charge into any danger! For Outsiders and humans!"

Nixe lowered her arms. "Then prove your strength. Strike me as hard as you can."

Swirling white energy wound around the almiran's fist as she flung herself forward, letting out a vicious screech. To Arriete's credit, her blow would have been exceptionally powerful compared to human strength, maybe even strong enough to knock Nixe down on a solid hit. But it was so telegraphed, so clumsy, that all it took was a single hand before Nixe's chest to catch the punch.

The almiran's ears sprang upward, perhaps in some kind of fear. Nixe pushed Arriete's hand aside as she took a step back, then swung her sword, striking with the flat of her blade. The almiran flew down the street, her body tumbling into a stopped car that didn't budge an inch from the apparent impact. A pinch formed in Nixe's stomach...this was like a mighty eagle toying with its helpless prey.

The almiran didn't stand at first. "I have no desire to hurt you, or the heroines you fight with," Nixe said sternly. "Stay out of my way, and allow us to protect the people of Garden City from the darkness within."

"Never!" grunted Arriete. Her form flickered and wavered, shifting to an upright position without going through the motions. There was a phantom nature to the almiran's "physical" body, as if she was little more than an illusion herself. But despite the Luminon's gift, Nixe couldn't perceive exactly what the almiran was—that perhaps had to do with the limitations of her human mind.

Arriete slowly advanced. Nixe raised her sword. "As long as you stand in the way of enlightenment, of bringing peace to Garden City, then I will—"

"What do _you_ know about peace?"

The almiran's outburst halted Nixe's words, prompted her eyes to widen.

"How is _anything_ you're doing bringing peace to _anyone_?" The Outsider continued forward. "All you're doing is hurting people! Taking them away from the ones who love them! Spreading fear and hate!"

Nixe scowled. It wasn't a forced response. "It isn't my doing that humans blame your people for what is happening. That they hide the truth from humankind, allowing paranoia to foster towards your people."

"You know you're making people fear us and yet you keep doing it! You keep stealing people's souls! That is what you are doing!" Ether surged around the almiran, despite no sign of an impending attack.

Her free hand clenching into a fist, Nixe said, "You know nothing of the Luminon's work."

"I know what you are doing! And I do not care if Ribbon believes otherwise—to aid in it makes you a terrible person and I will fight you until my end! So I can show you and every human that Outsiders like me mean them no harm!"

"What happened eight years ago? Or three years ago, even? Your people are just as burdened as humankind, and that is why we must free you of your burdens as well."

"And what about _your_ darkness? Maybe if you were not so 'burdened' then you could see what you are doing to people!"

"Once they understand our purpose," Nixe shouted, "they will accept the Luminon's enlightenment!"

Arriete stopped several feet before Nixe. "Who are you to decide we are needing of 'enlightenment'?"

"So you're fortunate enough to never know the hate of others? To see the ones you care about hurt you, hurt themselves, hurt each other?"

"The only ones who hurt me _are because of you_!"

Nixe's grip on her sword tightened. She wanted to refute the almiran, to ask how she was responsible for distrust and hate of the different, the very things they sought to purge from human hearts. The words wouldn't come to her, wouldn't pass her clenched teeth.

"And until humans and Outsiders can live together without the Luminon turning them into monsters," Arriete cried, "I will fight those monsters! The five of us will! We will fight the monster that is _you_!"

Ether surged into Nixe's blade. The almiran recoiled, warping back from Nixe in a flash.

Nixe swung her sword, but stopped herself from releasing her pent-up power at the almiran at the last second. Instead, the crescent of light erupted from her blade towards her right, striking a stationary car near her. The windows exploded into glass shards littering the street, while the metal crumpled and tore into shreds. Her attack had nearly sheared the vehicle in half.

As her eyes turned to the wreckage, to the ethereal feathers scattered through the air, her grip on her sword loosened. Her breathing slowed. An image flashed before her—the razor-feathers of the first Without she'd fought tearing apart cars—and her eyes widened.

" _Monster!_ "

The blow caught her on the side of the jaw, nearly knocking Nixe off of her feet. But it brought little pain, and as she recovered, she flapped her wings and released a gust of wind that flung the almiran off of her feet.

As Arriete crashed to the ground, another figure emerged into the street—umbrella in hand. "Arri!" Nimbus shouted, before her eyes narrowed upon Nixe. Gripping the umbrella in the center, she jumped into the air, flinging it like a javelin—a javelin that turned into a bolt of lightning as it left her fingers.

Nixe raised her sword, deflecting the electricity into the ground in front of her. The other heroines might have paused for a moment, long enough for Nixe to give a verbal retort, but she knew Nimbus wasn't one for small talk. As another umbrella formed in the heroine's hand, Nixe slashed her sword before her. Nimbus opened her umbrella and held it like a shield, but all Nixe had done was create a portal that she quickly threw herself into.

She'd intended to return straight home, to get back to bed as soon as possible. But instead, she emerged into the landscape of Solis, landing upon a grassy plain framed by cloud-trees and spirits.

Nixe stood among them, flesh-and-blood—or whatever she was in this form—against the shimmering ghost-like figures all around her. Most were humanoid, but she couldn't distinguish human from Outsider, save for the most obviously-inhuman of the spirits. None of them acted with suspicion towards the others, treated them as monsters...

" _Nixe._ "

She turned to see the Luminon approaching, then quickly turned away. Her sword vanished into twinkling light. "L-Luminon, I..."

" _You let your resolve falter._ "

The Luminon's voice was firm, like a parent about to scold her. Nixe caught the spirits around her in her sight—the souls they'd stolen—and forced her eyes shut. "Yes...I...I let my anger get the best of me."

" _I know. So do you, of how the failings of your people only bring suffering to those who are undeserving, who have done nothing to wrong them._ "

Nixe had no idea whose car she'd wrecked. She'd probably never meet its owner. What cost would it bring to that random, innocent person and those around them?

She clenched her fists, tears welling in her eyes. The almiran's words echoed in her ears, as they'd done so many times in Nixe's own inner voice. Everything they were doing, all the pain and fear it caused, it would ultimately be for the good of everyone. That act, done out of blind anger...

A warmth folded around her, almost seeping through her entire being. Nixe gasped, her head springing up as she realized that the Luminon had folded one wing around her. Despite bringing a calming feeling to her core, Nixe's tears continued. She couldn't remember the last time either of her parents comforted her like this...

" _Nixe,_ " the Luminon said, their voice softer and less echoing, " _your atonement shall be freeing those you have wrongs from the burdens they bear. When the time of enlightenment comes for all, they will never again know such suffering._ "

If only that time could come for her. To be freed of the pain that defined her life. To live carefree and happy for once. But she remembered why that wasn't her fate now. If only she wasn't one of the heroines...

The Luminon drew their wing away from Nixe. " _Of all mortal failings, anger and wrath are among the darkest. They blind one sight's of right and wrong. They are the most destructive of mortal failings, both to oneself and others._ "

Nixe looked to the Luminon, seeing their head was bowed, just as her own had been. "Do you...know that yourself?"

The Luminon's eyes met Nixe's for only a moment. " _If it will bring you understanding, I will share it with you._ "

With a flap of the Luminon's wings, the two appeared in a forest glade, without a single spirit in sight. This place seemed less brilliant than the rest of Solis, as if shrouded by shadows.

The Luminon stood in the center of the clearing. " _There was a time when the children of ether would venture into worlds beyond their own. One such world was of anima, with its people taking their first steps into awareness._ "

A world of anima? Could that be...Earth itself? Had Outsiders visited the human world in the past, millennia ago?

" _Many portals were formed between these worlds, though only one remains in the present. In that ancient time, the children of ether awakened the children of anima to the knowledge of magic. But they could not wield its power as those of ether could. They were...limited._ "

Figures of light appeared before Nixe. Several were inhuman outlines, with familiar Outsider figures—one of the deer-centaurs, the vine-armed plant-people, another avalerion, and even an odona with a dream-eater upon their head. Had those Outsiders existed in that time, or had the Luminon conjured such figures to be familiar to Nixe?

" _To evoke magic requires energy. For the children of ether, drawing in that energy is little different from one of your kind breathing. But the children of anima cannot draw upon the energy of their world as the children of ether do. Either they must sacrifice the life of others...or their own._ "

Nixe nodded. She understood so far, she figured.

" _Some children of anima used this gift for good. Others used it for wicked ends. The children of ether who visited this young people were no different, and they too carried out terrible deeds. Their darkness tainted the hearts of others, and that darkness demanded to be sated._ "

The silhouettes of light faded away, leaving only one human figure and one Outsider-like figure. Nixe couldn't quite make out its features.

" _Even a heart once filled with kindness, empathy, love...could be consumed by bitterness and hatred. Driven by the desire for revenge, despite such bringing no closure and never returning the ones lost. In the end, he fulfilled his desire. But the magic he had summoned burned away every last spark of his being. What remained perished in my embrace._ "

Each of the Luminon's wings seemed to sag slightly. Their embrace? Had this person been...?

" _It was in that moment that I realized that even the brightest soul is a mere slave of one's inner darkness. That neither children of anima, nor children of ether would know true peace as long as those failings remained in their being._ "

Nixe wanted to say something, if only some kind of acknowledgement. The Luminon lifted their head and said, " _The time finally draws near. It has taken much time before I could begin my work, and soon the light of Solis will shine bright enough to bring enlightenment to all in your world. For now, it is time for you to return._ "

It was almost as if the Luminon now wanted to be alone, and Nixe would oblige. She summoned her sword, and created a tear back to her bedroom. She took one last glance to the Luminon, their head and wings still lowered, before Nixe's own wings carried her into the light.

Nixe arrived back in her bedroom. As the light faded, she checked her alarm clock. Still a bit before two...if she went back to sleep now, she'd wake up groggy and exhausted. Returning the bird to its cage, Nixe grabbed her tablet from her desk and tucked herself in, intending on wasting time until she needed to get ready for school.

It was hard to let go of all that'd happened tonight. She wished she could just go back to her dreams, to peaceful rest and fantasies of nonsense. Yet tonight had been a nightmare, born of her own heart.

Everything she'd done, everything the heroines knew she'd done...it had to be worth it, to save people from themselves.

And maybe then she could be saved from herself, too.


	14. Gesture

When Nixe pulled herself out from beneath her sheets, her eyelids heavy and her head dizzy, the memories of what Dove had learned were still playing in her mind. Had the Luminon been speaking about Earth? Had they truly once been in contact with humankind, long long ago? Or could there be other worlds out there where humans existed—or at least human-like beings?

Pondering such things was much better than thinking about her own actions the night before. Someone was going to wake up to their destroyed car. Had anyone witnessed her doing that? Would the blame fall on the Without she'd fought? Or simply upon the Outsiders as a whole?

She listened to her father getting ready for work, followed by her mother's sleepy yawns. As much as she didn't want to be anywhere near them this morning, more out of fear that they might recognize something was going on with their daughter, she'd forgotten to prepare her lunch for school the night before. Sighing, she dragged herself out of bed and out of her bedroom.

= ~ = ~ = ~ = ~ =

Her thoughts about the Luminon, their plans, herself, and everything distracted her from both of her first two classes. Fortunately, none of the teachers noticed her lack of attention, called upon her to answer questions she hadn't noticed being asked.

The Luminon wanted to know who the heroines were. Nixe now knew one, sort of, though she figured the Luminon wanted to know the human ones rather than the Outsider fighting with them. Arriete, her name was...the rabbit-Outsider, the almiran. Nixe had looked up what her people were called after Arriete had joined the heroines, fought alongside them.

As weak as she was, she was still fighting to protect people. Nixe kept herself from thinking about _who_ Arriete was defending Garden City against.

The idea that Outsiders were kept from intervening was interesting though, even if Nixe should have realized they'd rarely involved themselves in the Without attacks and the Luminon's abductions. Was the fear of Outsiders having some kind of gathered force in the human world any worse than people's distrust of Outsiders over the Withouts? After all, humankind already knew from the invasion eight years ago that even just one Outsider was far more than average people could handle.

But it wasn't only Outsiders becoming Withouts. How was that being kept secret? Why weren't there reports of humans being the ones left behind after one of the monsters was defeated? They were left in stasis, just as the Outsiders were. Their families would be devoid of their presence, their—

Nixe closed her eyes, holding them tight and trying to think only of the darkness she saw behind her eyelids. When she opened them once again, she forced them upon her textbook, making herself read whatever was on the page.

It didn't distract herself nearly as much as she'd hoped.

= ~ = ~ = ~ = ~ =

Once the lunch bell rang, Nixe made her way to the cafeteria, picking a seat at the end of one of the tables. Most of the other kids eagerly started into their lunches; her sandwich remained untouched while she pretended to read one of her textbooks as she scanned the lunch hall and everyone in it.

To her right, she overheard the word "Outsiders". She glanced to the students next to her, two boys and two girls chatting.

"...I mean, have you ever talked to one of them?" said one of the boys. "They're like aliens!"

"Oh no, I haven't," said one of the girls, shaking her head. "They're freaky. Have you seen those ones that have that bubble on their heads? What's underneath that?"

"They're not even the worst," the first boy replied. "There's this one I saw that was like a big furry snake."

—like the one Nixe had fought as a Without the night before?

"Have you seen any of them when they go crazy?" the second girl said with a shudder. "They get even more horrifying!"

"One of them put my dad under some kinda spell," the second boy said glumly. "None of them can snap him out of it."

Nixe bit her lip. Had that boy's father been turned into a Without? Was that what they'd told him and his family?

"I was creeped out as soon as I heard they'd be allowed in schools!" the first girl said. "I mean, just look at what happened at Eden High, that one that went crazy there!"

"Imagine if that had happened here," said the first boy.

"My dad would have taken me out of classes if they'd let one of those weirdos in here," the second girl quipped.

Nixe closed her textbook, and slipped her sandwich back into her backpack. Any appetite she'd had was gone, between these students' distrust and her own guilt.

"You ever notice how the Outsiders don't do anything about the ones who go crazy?" the second boy noted.

"Who knows?" snapped the first girl. "Maybe they don't really care."

"Maybe those heroines are from their world, too," the first boy scoffed. "Make us think they're here to save us, when they're just keeping the Outsiders in order."

Nixe clenched her textbook tight as she returned it to her backpack.

"I don't even feel safe these days any time I see one in public," the first girl said. "Why do they even let them go out with other people, when they could just snap and go crazy like that?"

Nixe's body tensed up.

"Who knows when one of them will go nuts and kill someone?"

"Who knows," Nixe blurted out, "when any _human_ could go nuts and kill someone?" She didn't look in those kids' directions, but spoke loudly enough that she hoped they heard.

"Excuse me?" said one of the girls.

Turning to face them, Nixe said, "There's plenty of humans who do terrible things to other people. Why aren't you afraid of everyone, then?"

One of the boys flashed a sneer. "Who asked you, anyway?"

"What, are you really so fond of those freaks?" asked one of the girls, with a near-grimace.

It wasn't even as much her tone or words as that expression. Not even one of distrust, but of disgust and disdain. Nixe sprung from her seat, leaning upon the edge of the table as she glared at the four students.

"Do you really think you're so much better than them?" she shouted. "When you're think they're just monsters and freaks, that they're a danger to you just because they're different from you?"

The second girl cringed in her seat, glanced away from Nixe—perhaps with a hint of shame. The other boy leaned towards Nixe and said, "What's your problem?"

Her grip on the table tightened. "My problem is people like you who think they're just monsters! Outsiders..." She closed her eyes for a moment—hadn't she once felt the same way about Outsiders herself? "...they're people too! And they're a lot better people than _you_!"

She pushed herself up, still tense and furious—mostly at the thought that her words would mean nothing. Perhaps most people never would trust Outsiders, just as Anise figured. It was all too human a thing to fear those different from themselves.

Only once an awkward silence fell over the cafeteria, devoid of the usual chatter between students, did Nixe glance around the room. Everyone was looking at her. Maybe not every single student, but still far more eyes than she was used to.

Far more than she was comfortable with.

Far more than she could risk.

Nixe snatched up her backpack, and didn't even catch her breath before running out of the cafeteria, away from the countless watching eyes, all the students who'd surely be judging her for her outburst. And what would the teachers supervising lunch period think?

Heck, what if any of them figured there was only one reason a reclusive girl like her would flip out and shout in defense of Outsiders like that?

Nixe ducked into a stairwell, one that was thankfully empty. A faint hint of winter chill crept in between the back doors, but she paid it little mind. She headed into the cubbyhole beneath the stairs, panting as she leaned into the corner least visible from the hallway. Her backpack slipped from her fingers, and her body slumped against the two walls.

She...she couldn't let herself say things like that, do things like that. It was a risk to her mission. For all she knew, half the student body could now think she was one of the heroines. Or if not that...what did kids think of their peers who stood up for the Outsiders? Would they mock her, taunt her? Everyone must have seen Nixe Fulton as a loner weirdo, but how cruel would their thoughts be now?

"Hey...?"

Nixe gasped, her head springing up to the girl who stood before her. Her hair, a sleek dirty-blonde, was neatly-combed into a ponytail over her shoulder. She wore a white blouse with floral lace patterns over the shoulders and beige slacks, fairly plain clothes.

"I'm sorry," the girl said, taking a step back. "I didn't mean to startle you. I just..." She glanced away for a moment, then asked, "Are you okay?"

Forcing a nod, Nixe said, "Sure."

The girl didn't seem too convinced. "I heard what you said about Outsiders in the lunch hall."

"Who didn't?"

Kneeling a bit closer to Nixe, the girl said, "I'm glad you said what you did. There's so much distrust and fear towards Outsiders, when they're people just like you and me. I imagine you have Outsider friends, too?"

Nixe first wanted to deny the question, but then she remembered her chat with Anise. That had been friendly enough, she supposed. "I guess, yeah."

"I wish more people would be as understanding," the girl said, a smile overtaking her frown. "The Outsiders I know are such fascinating and friendly people. They just want to live in peace with us, for everyone to be safe and happy." She paused for a moment, then her smile grew wider. "Say, if you aren't finished with your lunch, would you like to join me and my friends?"

Nixe couldn't stop her eyebrows from rising at such a suggestion. No one had ever asked such a thing of her. No one ever had since she'd started high school. She'd chalked it up to having successfully put off everyone with her demeanour. Sure, she'd sit near other students, and sometimes she had the occasional comment to contribute to their chats, but an invitation like this?

Out of instinct, Nixe shrunk against the wall. "Thanks, but..." Who was this girl anyway? What were her friends even like? What would Nixe look like, dressed in a dull sweatshirt and jeans next to this girl in her bright clothes?

"Are you sure?" the girl asked. "It's no problem at all. My friends are very welcoming people, and they'll be happy too that you spoke up like that."

Maybe...maybe it was the distraction Nixe needed, even if just a brief one. To take her mind off of everything. Almost like her chat with Anise. She'd still be an outsider to this girl's group, no doubt, but maybe just being around other normal kids could let her forget how abnormal her own circumstances were.

She made herself smile, and said, "Alright, sure."

The other girl's face brightened into a radiant grin. "Great!" She sprang to her feet as Nixe pushed herself up, then held out a hand. "I'm Elvie, by the way."

Elvie... Nixe recognized the name. Elvie Radant, from her English class last semester. The only reason she remembered the name was because Elvie was a bit of a teacher's pet, always among the first to raise her hand whenever a question was asked. Had she been envious of Elvie's confidence for the girl's name to stick in her mind?

"I'm..." Nixe almost offered her own name, but stopped herself short. Did she want to give more that other people could identify her with? Enough people probably knew who she was already, though. And, as Nixe's eyes drifted down to the girl's extended hand, giving her own name was the least she could do in return for the girl's kindness.

She stared at the offered hand, noticing a pink ribbon wound around Elvie's wrist in a fancy pattern and tied into a bow at the back of her wrist. Her other arm had the same adornment, and as Nixe glanced up to her face, she spotted another pink ribbon keeping Elvie's ponytail together.

The ribbons, her posture, her smile, her gesture—

Nixe's eyes snapped down to Elvie's hand, where she pictured lavender gloves adorned with thick yellow ribbons. Her gaze rose to the girl's face, to her hair, where Nixe saw not a brownish-blonde ponytail but golden pigtails, kept in perfect style with a pair of lavender ribbons. Elvie's eyes weren't blue any longer—they were lavender, framed with a yellow bow-shaped mask—

She blinked, and though she now saw Elvie as she appeared before her, the afterimage lingered in her mind. Elvie looked just like _her_ , stood just like _her_. Not as they met now, but as she'd greeted Nixe that first day they met—

Nixe couldn't hold back the gasp that escaped her throat. She backed away, simply thudding into the wall right behind her.

"What's wrong?" asked Elvie, taking a step closer. Her eyes widened, not out of shock or fear. That hand remained outstretched.

The girl stared for a few moments longer, and then Nixe saw it. The way Elvie's eyebrows rose, her eyes flared.

With her own gasp, Elvie recoiled. Her hand slowly lowered to her side, trembling. Even if the rest of her expression hadn't said it all, her open mouth reflected Elvie's shock all too well.

Neither of them said a word. Neither even blinked. Neither moved an inch, or at least deliberately. Elvie's lower lip quivered, as if she wanted to say something, yet the words weren't quite at the tip of her tongue.

Every part of Nixe's being didn't want to hear those words, and before she gave them a chance to come out, Nixe bolted for the stairwell doors. "W-wait!" cried Elvie behind her...which only further hastened Nixe's hands. Her fingers crashed above the handle on her first attempt. Her second grasp caught the metal, and she yanked the door open and ran into the corridor. She ran to her right, through the lunch hall—surely drawing even more attention to herself—then into the first girls' washroom she saw. Another girl was at the sink, but Nixe didn't watch her for any reaction as she dashed into the first stall.

Slamming the door and locking it, Nixe leaned against the clammy surface, holding it shut as if the whole world was about to barge in on her. Her stomach twisted and contorted, and for a moment she figured she would have lost her lunch had she eaten it. Mere seconds later, she still did so nonetheless.

Nixe's entire body shuddered non-stop as she rose. Her heart pounded in her chest, like she'd ran a marathon, a marathon away from vicious hawks intent on swooping down on her to make her their next meal. Even that seemed less terrifying than what had happened, with—

"Excuse me?" asked a female voice outside of the stall. Nixe almost screamed, and certainly would have if it had sounded like Elvie's. "Are you okay in there?"

The deep breath Nixe took didn't calm her at all. "Yeah...I'm fine," she replied, barely able to hold back the panic in her voice. "Just...just felt a little woozy..."

"Do—do you need me to get someone?"

"No!" She coughed, feeling her stomach churn again. "I-I'm fine, honest..."

Whoever was outside didn't answer, and Nixe heard rapid footsteps depart from the bathroom. A horrifying thought crossed her mind: what if whoever that was was also one of them too? One of the heroines?

What if, after all this time she'd been looking for them, trying to figure out who they were...they'd been doing the same? And now they knew. Now Elvie—Ribbon—knew who Dove really was.

What would happen now? Would she tell the other heroines? The school? The police? They wouldn't have any proof, and Nixe certainly wouldn't transform before them—but would they need that? Couldn't they just piece together camera footage from Amaryllis High and throughout the city? Maybe she'd avoided them as of late by travelling through Solis, but what about that day she'd first met Ribbon and Nimbus? The day she'd betrayed the heroines? Or wouldn't they realize that every time Dove appeared to fight a Without or the heroines, Nixe Fulton was nowhere to be found?

Even if none of that would come, it didn't matter. Sooner or later, the heroines would come for her. To stop her.

She had to leave.

As Nixe stepped out of the stall, she spotted a new girl at the sink, washing her hands. She sported the crimson sweater of Amaryllis High's athletic teams—could she have been on the dodgeball team? Could she be—

Nixe caught the other girl's face in the mirror, the reflection frozen in a curious stare. Without another moment of hesitation, Nixe ran out of the bathroom.

The class bell chimed just as she stepped into the hallway. The crowd of students would hopefully hide her from any searching eyes...or anyone who would remember her outburst in the cafeteria.

She made her way to her locker, pulled out her coat, and quickly closed it before heading for a back exit. The one she first went to was the stairwell Elvie had found her in—upon realizing this, her stomach twisted and she hurried through the crowded hallway down to the other back exit doors.

Only once she was outside in the freezing cold did Nixe put on her coat. People would have seen her leave, but that didn't matter now. For all she knew, it was only a matter of time until her deepest, darkest secret—one of them—was exposed to the entire student body.

She couldn't return.

Nixe departed from Amaryllis High, hoping to vanish into pedestrian traffic. A teenage girl obviously skipping school would stand out like a sore thumb; maybe she could find somewhere to hide until it was time to go home.

Like the realm of the Luminon, where the being likely awaited what Nixe had learned.

It was her mission. Her task. Whatever the Luminon had in mind, knowing Elvie's identity would in some way further what they sought—and what Nixe sought.

Yet the thought of telling the Luminon about Elvie brought to Nixe's mind her own fear and terror about Elvie's realization, the possibility of her identity being revealed. And just how would knowing who Ribbon was help purge the darkness from the hearts of Garden City's people?

Nixe breathed a silent sigh, and as she stepped onto the sidewalk, her mind raced and debated about what to do with what she had learned...and what she likely faced.


	15. Promise

Every minute Nixe spent on the sidewalks of downtown, she felt like she was being watched. Even if it was just people noticing a teenage girl skipping school, that still felt like far too much attention upon herself.

It was the sight of an Outsider—one with large butterfly-wings and four furry arms, clad in a silk dress that seemed far too light for winter weather—on the other side of the street from Nixe that prompted a horrifying thought.

Could Outsiders see the magic within her? Could they sense it somehow, realize that Nixe was no ordinary human?

What if that had been why Anise had been so kind to her? Had she known, and sought to learn more about Nixe—about Dove?

Her stomach felt like a collapsing black hole, and these thoughts only spiked the nervous nausea within her. She had to get away from the eyes of others.

Glancing around, she spotted a branch of the Garden City library, a sleek building with large glass windows. Perhaps the best she could do was a seat in the back, but that would be better than standing out in the open.

= ~ = ~ = ~ = ~ =

Nixe found herself an interesting-sounding novel and a seat obscured from the windows by bookcases. Setting her backpack down between the chair and the wall, hoping no one would see it and ask themselves questions, she sat down to immerse herself in a world of fantasy, a place where her troubles and her enemies didn't exist.

At least, she tried. It still felt like, at any second, the heroines would show up and confront her. Or perhaps even Outsiders, having been aware of her secret all along. In the brief moments that she managed to focus on the novel itself, details of the characters and plot constantly slipped her mind. Nixe considered going back to reread from the start, yet...it seemed so inconsequential, this book and her enjoyment of it.

When the novel's villain appeared, a rogue knight who conspired with witches to expose the corruption of the crown, it became even harder for Nixe to register the words on the page. The rogue knight insisted his actions were for the good of all in the kingdom, even as he murdered innocents who stumbled upon his schemes and plotted assassinations. Maybe the heroine, a squire thrust into these events after the death of her mentoring knight, did blind herself to the wrongs the villain tried to put an end to...

Before, when fantasy novels had been an escape from her life, Nixe had been able to imagine herself as the protagonists. To picture herself in a life other than her own—lives that weren't short of problems, of course, but lives that weren't full of _her_ problems.

It didn't work now.

Maybe...maybe it was because it wasn't the heroine Nixe saw herself in now.

She made it halfway through the book before she gave up. Rising from her seat, she tried to find its original place on the shelves.

Just as she found where the novel belonged on the basis of its author's last name, a wave of invisible energy washed over her. Echoes followed that initial pulse, their strength and frequency telling Nixe of its proximity...and how powerful the awakening Without was.

Nixe closed her eyes for a moment. Not now...

But she had to answer. She put the book back, retrieved her backpack, and headed out of the library. The feeling of being watched returned over her, yet she knew she had to find somewhere secret, an alleyway between buildings.

Nixe slipped into the first alley on the next block, checking behind her to make sure no one was following before ducking behind a dumpster and letting the bird out of its cage. Rather than dashing out of the alleyway, Nixe summoned her sword, preparing to open a portal to the Without's location—

But she stopped herself. What if the Luminon knew what she had learned? Or could sense it upon her passage through Solis?

Was she ready to give away Elvie's secret like that?

Gripping her sword tight, Nixe beat her wings and launched herself into the air, soaring above the surrounding buildings. With a powerful flap, she propelled herself in the direction of the echoes.

When she neared their source, Nixe dropped down into the middle of the street. Her senses pinpointed the Without to her left, and she started into a dash at the monster, her sword charging with magic.

The beast lifted up a car—thankfully one without anyone inside—over its head before it turned to Nixe. It was a hulking figure, full of muscle and brown fur. Its face was like that of a rat, but with longer, jagged front teeth. Its eyes, pits of black that still glared with hellish fury, set upon Nixe.

With a roar that came out as a cross between a screech and a howl, the Without threw the car at her.

Nixe's eyes widened—then narrowed a split-second later. Her wings flapped quickly, creating gales to counter the speed of the airborne vehicle. Maybe this was beyond her, maybe it was best for her to get out of the way...

Yet as the car soared towards her, she knew she'd left herself too little time to dash away.

Nixe raised her arms, letting her sword drop from her hands and vanish into sparkling light. Bracing herself, she ducked slightly, her wings still beating.

The impact of the car against her outstretched hands slid her back along the pavement, and had it not been for her magical winds steadying its momentum, the car would have toppled over her head and crashed into the ground behind her. Instead, she was able to steady the massive weight, using the gales of her wings to help her set it down softly.

Over the vehicle, her gaze set upon the Without, who glared at her before starting into a charge down the street, stomping upon all four thick limbs.

Nixe sprang over the car with ease, summoning her sword and swinging it down at the approaching monster. Its howl echoed in the street as it recoiled, clutching its maw where her blade had found its mark.

Before the Without could recover, Nixe swung her blade, unleashing an arc of light that blasted the beast to the ground. She took flight into the air, and as she prepared to deliver the final strokes, the monster recovered and leaped after her. One massive, gnarled hand lunged for her, but Nixe knocked it away with a spinning kick, all while ether welled within her blade.

With a single downward stroke, Nixe's gathered magic became a pillar of light and wind that sent the monster crashing down into the street below, the luminance charging into its being as it screamed. The magic culminated in a final burst of blinding light, with which Nixe fell to the ground.

By the time Nixe landed, the Without's form had already dissipated. Remaining in the street was a human man, dressed in a leather jacket and jeans. What inner flaws had driven him to become a monster? Nixe glimpsed into his being, what remained of him without the light within his soul.

A horrible coldness filled her being as images flashed within her mind. People in despair, in desperation, begging for more, all while this man was happy to profit from their suffering and misery—

A gasp escaped Nixe's throat. This man was a drug dealer. One without remorse for those whose lives he destroyed. What had triggered his transformation...he'd believed a contact had ratted him out. Someone so terrible, acting as if he believed in honour...

Nixe closed her eyes. Her sword fell from her hands. She'd seen dark sides to people all too often. Yet this was the first truly heartless and amoral soul she'd glanced into. One who relished in the darkness they brought upon others, who sought to stain the lives of innocent people for their own gain.

What would become of such a person through the Luminon's enlightenment? Could it save even such a sickening person?

Even if it couldn't...it'd save so many more people. And it'd save the people that were made victims by a person like this.

When Nixe opened her eyes, she spotted bystanders emerging from buildings, looking over the damage to the street—and to Nixe herself. How many of them would recognize her as the heroine who opposed the others?

How long would it be until the other heroines arrived, having sensed the Without awakening themselves?

Would they know about Nixe already?

She didn't dare risk such a confrontation. Her wings sent her high into the sky, away from that street and swooping down into an alleyway on the other side of downtown.

As Nixe landed, she contemplated her options now...but only one really remained. She needed to get home, before her father did.

How long would it be until the truth reached her parents?

The thought of travelling through Solis, of the Luminon bringing her before them, was still too daunting. And flying through the city would only lead any watching eyes closer to where Nixe lived.

With an unsteady hand, she guided the bird back into its cage. Once Dove had vanished from the world, Nixe Fulton stepped out onto the sidewalk. Judging from the sun's position in the sky, she was probably going to be late getting home anyway.

Her father's fury seemed the last thing she needed to worry about as she trudged to the nearest bus stop.

= ~ = ~ = ~ = ~ =

By the time Nixe's house came into sight, the sky had all but darkened. Her heart fluttered in her throat as she contemplated her father's fury, how her mother would react in turn.

She stopped just as she saw the driveway...and no sign of her dad's car. Was he still at work? Or out looking for her?

Despite her anxiety, Nixe still approached the door. The knob turned in her grip, and she stepped inside. The house was strangely quiet, without even the noise of the television in the den.

The first clue should have been the abundance of empty bottles on the coffee table. Her mother said nothing as she passed. There was no hint of dinner's aroma in the air, no lights on in the kitchen.

After fifteen minutes in her bedroom, Nixe headed into the living room. Her mother stared at the blank television until Nixe spoke up. "What's for dinner, Mom?"

The beer her mom had been taking a swig from dribbled down her chin. "Oh... Oh, I forgot to put the chicken on. Co-could you do that for me, Nixe?"

Her voice low, Nixe replied, "Yeah."

Just as Nixe turned away, her mother said, "Your father's gone on another one of his business trips."

Nixe froze. So that was it. And her mom still told the same story. "Did...did he say when he'd be back?"

Her mother either didn't answer, or just shook her head.

Nixe stood still for a few seconds, just as silent. Only once she'd started to leave the den did she hear something from her mom.

"I'm sorry, Nixe."

She continued out of the living room, pausing on the other side of the hallway wall from her mom. One hand braced herself against the wall while her head lowered. It'd been a long time since one of her dad's "business trips" had brought her to tears, and this time was no exception.

But could she really blame her dad? Or her mom for this?

Dragging herself back into the living room, Nixe said, "Mom?"

Her mother glanced to her.

Nixe kept one hand out of sight, a hand she clenched into a trembling fist. "It's going to be okay. I promise. Everything will get better."

She didn't know what her mother's lingering stare meant. Maybe it didn't mean anything at all; maybe her mind was far too intoxicated to parse her daughter's words. Odds were that, come the morning, she wouldn't even remember what Nixe had said.

Once the chicken and potatoes were in the oven, Nixe returned to her room. She'd been full of dread the entire day, thinking that any moment that the heroines would spring out to expose her, try to capture her and bring her to justice. Maybe that wouldn't have happened; maybe what Elvie had wanted was a chance to plead with her, human-to-human, to turn away from the Luminon's side.

But Nixe couldn't. Not after going this far. Not after coming this close. Not after all of the sacrifices the people of Garden City had made, the losses they'd suffered.

All the pain and darkness she'd brought upon Garden City needed to be worth it.

The shining bird took flight from its cage, and Nixe forged a tear between worlds with her sword. Her wings spread out within her bedroom before she soared into the light.

Nixe's feet touched down upon the plains of Solis, an empty place devoid of the usual spirits that grew more and more numerous within the realm. Were her destinations in this place decided upon by the Luminon?

Just as she thought of them, their voice echoed through her surroundings. " _Have you learned of what I asked you to seek?_ "

She felt the Luminon's presence appear behind her, as if they had warped to her location, and Nixe turned to face the Luminon. Her head bowed...with how terrified she'd been for Elvie to realize her secret...

Lifting her gaze back to the Luminon, Nixe said, "Yes...but one of them knows who I am now too."

"S _uch was perhaps inevitable, but it will matter not before long. When all are blessed with enlightenment, none shall judge you for your actions._ "

Perhaps, but there remained plenty of time in the present for her to be judged.

" _Now, tell me what you have learned._ "

She needed to ask one question first. "W-what are you planning to do with this information?"

" _I have yet to make plans for what you have learned. It is simply wise to know and understand one's opposition._ "

Maybe the Luminon did sincerely believe in what they did, what they sought for all of humankind and Outsider-kind. Yet they hadn't told Nixe the full truth from the start. It'd only been after she'd connected the pieces herself that the Luminon had explained everything.

Still...they owed it to the people of Garden City, the ones who'd suffered the wrath of their fellow citizens' inner darknesses for far too long.

And the heroines themselves were just as deserving of the peace they sought.

Nixe closed her eyes, took a deep breath, then spoke, "Her name is Elvie Radant. She's a student at Amaryllis High School."

The Luminon closed their eyes. " _Yes. You have done well, Nixe._ "

"I'll see what I can learn about the others."

" _For now, that shall not be necessary. Continue to conceal your secret from others, Nixe. When the time comes, there shall be no need for deceptions and mistruths._ "

Like claims of business trips... "I'd better get home now," Nixe said.

" _You have served me well, Nixe. Soon, darkness shall be cleansed from all souls within your city. I am certain that will bring peace to your weary heart._ "

Such was all Nixe could hope for. That, and her hope still being something she deserved.

She swiftly created a portal back to her bedroom, flying back into her own world and returning the bird to its cage once she landed.

There was still over half an hour left until dinner would be ready. Nixe moved her backpack off of her bed, then dropped onto her sheets and stared at the ceiling.

For all Nixe knew, every second was counting down to the moment when the heroines or perhaps even Outsiders would burst through the front door and storm her bedroom. If that happened, would she have a chance to escape? Or to transform and fight them off? What would happen to her mom?

But like that almiran who fought alongside the heroines had said, the Outsiders had stood back all this time. None others helped the heroines. None others had ever challenged Nixe. And after all, what would it look like to have a bunch of Outsiders swarming a suburban home, dragging out some teenage girl?

Maybe the Outsiders might not do anything. But the heroines? They probably wouldn't charge into one of her classes to confront her, accuse an ordinary-seeming girl of being the Luminon's messenger. But they'd be watching her. Would Elvie or one of the others be willing to approach her about what she was doing?

Even if that didn't happen, after her outburst at school today, what would the other students think of her? Would they suspect her to be one of the heroines? Any of the teachers could probably put together the pieces, based on the times she'd arrived late to class.

It was only a matter of time, wasn't it?

If she'd held any real attachment to her education, it might have been a difficult choice. But school had always seemed like nothing but a countdown until she could get a full-time job, get her own life. She'd never even considered what would become of her mom and dad after she left, Nixe realized with a pang of guilt.

At least now she was shaping a better future for herself. For her parents. For all of Garden City.

And, she told herself, for Elvie too.


	16. Fury

Nixe left home the next morning, as if she was going to school just like any other day. A dusting of snow had started overnight, and continued to sprinkle flakes of white upon Garden City.

As she spotted the gathered students at the bus stop, Nixe froze. All the other mornings when she'd worried about one of the other heroines being there with her seemed insignificant compared to the cold in her stomach now. For all she knew, that girl Elvie was among those students.

Would they notice Nixe walking away?

Would they notice her absence on the bus? From classes?

Would they _care_?

Nixe shook her head and turned away. It didn't ease the tension in her stomach at all. Of all the things to feel guilty about, skipping school had to be the least of them.

= ~ = ~ = ~ = ~ =

Classes had always seemed to pass by so slowly, but as Nixe bided her time either wandering around neighbourhoods or resting for a bit in coffee-shops and libraries, she almost began to miss the repetitive and banal nature of school. Sure, it was boring, most of it was stuff that'd never help her in life. But at least it was some kind of structure, some kind of consistency in her life.

A few librarians and baristas must have been suspicious of a teenage girl with a backpack coming in, but none said such to her. No one bothered her while she browsed the web on her tablet, perused her textbooks, anything to distract herself from her thoughts and to pass the time.

It was shortly after three o'clock that she felt it. A ripple of energy, but not like the jagged pulses of an awakening Without's fury. This was a serene wave, almost like a phantom tide gently washing over Nixe.

The Luminon had opened one of their portals.

They were planning to take another person for enlightenment.

Nixe put her tablet away in her bag, then hurried out of the café. She waited until she was a few blocks away to duck into an alleyway and find herself a concealed spot to let the bird out of its cage.

With a slash through the air, she forged a tear between worlds, then flew through the passage of light. Her wings flapped gently as she emerged, high in the sky above a suburban neighbourhood.

Below was a park, within which Nixe could see people fleeing in panic from the growing cloud of light within. Some tried to hide in corners or beneath play-structures, until the light drew nearer and they ran from their futile cover.

But one human wasn't running as the light came closer. She closed her eyes, trying to sense them. It was a boy, perhaps just younger than a teenager, cowering beneath a slide. Nixe's heart skipped a beat—she couldn't remember the Luminon taking away anyone so young.

Then she sensed another presence, one that wasn't human...or so she thought at first. When she looked down and saw the moving yellow-and-lavender figure, she recognized who it was instantly.

Ribbon.

Elvie.

The heroine dashed at the cloud of light, lashing out with her ribbon. Each swipe of her baton eroded away some of the light, but did little to stop its expansion.

Nixe's stomach twisted, but she had made her choice time and time again. Taking her sword in both hands, she dropped from the sky, swinging her arms downward.

As she neared Ribbon, she heard a shout of "Ribbon!"—along with a pulse of ether firing in Nixe's direction. A flap of her wings pushed her out of the way of the green beam of energy fired from Machina's palm.

Nixe landed, and as Machina fired her beam into the heart of the cloud, Ribbon started running around the light—towards the child beneath the slide? "Not so fast," Nixe shouted, slashing a portal and throwing herself through it in a single motion. She emerged in front of Ribbon, who lifted her ribbon baton—but not fast enough to stop the blast of light from Nixe's sword which knocked her to the ground.

She sensed another of the heroines approached before they released their attack, and Nixe countered with a gale of wind from her sword without looking in their direction. Her own gust of air sliced through the tornado of Nimbus's spinning umbrella, but the heroine weathered the impact by using the umbrella as a shield.

As Ribbon pushed herself up, she cried, "Dove! We won't let you take anyone else for the Luminon!"

"Do you even understand our mission, Ribbon?" Nixe spat. Out of the corner of her eye, Nimbus hurried over to join her allies. In the other direction came Bounce and Arriete—Nixe wondered if the almiran had told the heroine about her encounter with Dove.

Or if Ribbon had told the others what she learned about Dove.

Sprinting in, Bounce jumped into the air before screaming, "Dodge _this_!" A red dodgeball materialized before her that she spiked like a volleyball, her impact fuelling it with an aura of shimmering energy. Nixe did dodge the attack, effortlessly, then weaved out of the way as it ricocheted behind her and flew back in her direction. Just as Bounce caught and threw back the dodgeball, a slash of light cleaved through the ball and blasted Bounce to the ground.

"Stop!" screamed the almiran, charging at Nixe. This time, Nixe didn't bother toying with the Outsider. She bobbed away from the one clumsy punch she let Arriete throw before a slash from her ether-wreathed blade sent the almiran flying.

"Arri!" Ribbon cried. Her eyes met Nixe's, and as Nixe narrowed her own in answer, Ribbon's widened. Nixe's mind flashed back to that moment at Amaryllis High, when she and Elvie had recognized each other...

"Dove," Ribbon said, "why are you doing this? Why do you believe this is necessary."

Raising her sword before her, Nixe said, "You won't distract me now."

Yet they had. Machina and Nimbus cast their magic into the cloud of light, which was beginning to contract from their continued assault. Ribbon dashed towards them, swishing her streamer through the air to conjure an ethereal golden ribbon that wove itself into a bow before them. A barrier—but one that wouldn't withstand Nixe's power.

As Nixe focused, she sensed the child once more. He still hadn't moved—he must have been paralyzed with fear. He really was just a kid...

A dodgeball flew in from her left; Nixe blocked it with the flat of her blade, before weaving forward to avoid a swift punch from behind. She dodged the rest of Arriete's feeble blows while parrying each ball Bounce threw, even the ones that ricocheted off impossible angles to fly at Nixe once more.

Just as Nixe swatted one back at Bounce to stifle her assault, she glanced back to the cloud of light. It had shrunken considerably—the heroines had nearly prevailed. Propelling herself into the air, away from Arriete, Nixe welled her power into her sword before unleashing it as an expanding wing of light towards Ribbon's barrier.

Before it tore through the ethereal ribbon, Nimbus glanced over her shoulder, then threw herself before the barrier, umbrella spread open before her. The umbrella disintegrated before Nixe's attack, and Nimbus let out a brief scream before she crashed into the ground. A sweeping beam from Machina forced Nixe to dodge away rather than take her chance, and in that time Ribbon swung out her baton. The shimmering gold ribbon wrapped around the cloud of light. With a sharp cry and a pulse of magical energy, Ribbon pulled tight, and the cloud of light burst into a puff of sparkles, the portal to the Luminon's realm shattered.

Nixe landed, while Bounce and Arriete rejoined their allies. While Machina helped Nimbus to her feet, Ribbon hurried over to the boy beneath the slide.

The heroines stood ready, but none made a move towards Nixe. A silence fell over the park as Ribbon knelt by the boy's side. A few seconds later, the child started running out of the park, but Ribbon didn't rise.

Nixe forced out a smirk. She'd hesitated over that boy—she'd let them win. There wasn't any point in remaining longer. "Another mortal is kept from enlightenment," Nixe said to the heroines. Behind them, Ribbon slowly stood. "To continue to suffer from the darkness of human hearts. But it will not be long until all of Garden City is freed of this burden, whether or not you allow—

Her words stopped the moment she saw Ribbon's feet push off the ground, the heroine breaking into a sprint, raising her hand into the air and summoning her ribbon baton moments before swinging it down towards Nixe.

Nixe raised her sword. Ribbon's ribbon clashed off of her blade with a burst of sparks. The heroine swiped again and again, Nixe stepped back with each easily-parried attack. She couldn't help but to chuckle, as if Ribbon thought she could slip past Nixe's guard. Once she'd had enough of this display, she ended it with a magic-imbued slashed that sent Ribbon to the ground.

Before she lowered her blade, Nixe spotted a torrent of hail within a swirling tornado, a pulsing verdant beam, and a crimson dodgeball flying towards her in unison. She took flight, weaving away from the green laser, avoiding the dodgeball that ricocheted off the ground up at her, then drove straight into the heart of Nimbus's tornado, the force around Nixe's blade carving through the vortex of wind and ice as it drove towards the heroines.

But then her sword was jerked away, with enough force to draw her path away from the three before her. As she landed, Nixe spotted what had caught her—a golden ribbon coiled around her blade.

Before she could take off, a flurry of weak punches began to rain upon her back. What little force the almiran could muster was cushioned by Nixe's wings. With a swift yank, Nixe sliced away the ribbon holding her blade, then closed her wings in around her.

With a loud shout, Nixe unfurled her wings, releasing with them hurricane-force winds around her. Arriete was flung away as swirling gales gathered around her sword. A lightning-swift series of slashes towards the unsteadied heroines unleashed vicious blasts of wind towards them. Bounce dove out of the way, and Nimbus tried to shelter Machina with her umbrella, but her weapon only withstood a few before it was torn to shreds and she was blasted off of her feet along with Machina.

She dashed forward in flight to strike again, only to feel Ribbon's streamer catch her blade once more. Nixe turned, glaring upon the heroine before she dove down at Ribbon.

Before her sword came down, something that felt like a white-hot meteor crashing down at a million miles a second struck Nixe in the center of her back, between her wings. A grunt escaped her as she landed upon her feet. Had that been—

Another of Bounce's dodgeballs flew from the heroine's hands. With a forceful jerk, Nixe pulled Ribbon's baton from her hand, the streamer and handle dissipating as Nixe struck the dodgeball back at Bounce. She turned back just as Ribbon swung a freshly-conjured streamer at Nixe, her blade deflecting Ribbon's attack.

Nixe took the offense, with Ribbon backing up steadily under Nixe's rain of slashes. Before Nixe delivered a heavy ether-charged blow, a heavy wind began to push upon her back. Ribbon took the chance to attack, but Nixe parried the ribbon. She almost counter-attacked, but her sword wasn't blocked by Ribbon's streamer—but by a dodgeball that flew between them and knocked Nixe's blade away from Ribbon.

Ribbon whipped out her streamer around Nixe's sword again, but before Nixe could tear her weapon free, a stream of searing energy struck Nixe in the side, building into a powerful blast that knocked Nixe to the ground. Her sword tumbled away and fading into light as Nixe caught herself with one hand, rather than collapsing completely. Her blade reappeared in her hand as she stood, the heroines gathering together. Nixe's other hand clenched into a fist. They'd managed a few lucky hits...yet Nixe didn't feel worn or hurt in the slightest. The heroines' weariness was visible in their stances, their glares—

The energy-cloaked fist that struck Nixe's jaw barely pained her, yet Arriete's sneak-attack welled more fury in her than the others' attacks. She swung her arm out to shove the Outsider away, but her hand passed through Arriete's form without effect.

Ribbon charged forth again, and Nixe raised her sword to deflect the golden ribbon. Their weapons clashed time and time again with sparkles and pulses of light. This time, Nixe noticed Machina dashing over to her right. The same slash that parried one of Ribbon's swipes deflected the bolt of energy Machina fired from her palm, and Nixe followed the momentum of her swing into a spin and smacked Ribbon to the ground with her wings. She propelled herself at Machina, who blocked the first strike with a holographic shield projected from her right arm. Nixe thrust out her sword, unleashing a gale of force that Machina's barrier couldn't stop from flinging the heroine into a wall behind her.

She spun around, swatting away one of Bounce's dodgeballs right at Ribbon. As Bounce apologized to her ally, Nimbus leaped into the air and flung her closed umbrella like a javelin, the weapon becoming a crackling bolt of lightning that Nixe blocked with ease.

Yet a split-second later, an electric pain and sensation surged through Nixe's body. How had...? When the raincoat-clad heroine landed, she summoned and hurled another umbrella. The stunning current through Nixe stopped—and Nixe sensed Machina dashing away from behind her.

That moment of distraction ended as what felt like a white-hot spear striking her chest flared throughout her entire body. A scream left her throat, and her feet left the ground.

The thud of herself landing upon the snowy ground was followed by an eerie silence that seemed to last an eternity, even if Nixe knew it was only mere seconds. She'd overpowered them so easily in their previous fights, even when all of them had faced her together. Had they grown that much stronger? Or was it simply their teamwork, their experience?

Nixe lifted her head, to the sight of Ribbon dashing towards her. Did they truly believe they could defeat her? What would they do with once if they did? Nixe was far from finished, while she could see the weariness in Ribbon's eyes, even past the firm determination and anger. Not quite fury...from Ribbon's initial attack, Nixe would have expected far more rage, especially from the one heroine who so rarely lashed out at her...

Still, as dedicated as Ribbon and her fellow heroines were...as noble as Nixe knew her adversaries to be...

Nixe clenched her hand tightly around her sword.

She couldn't give up now.

Not after everything she'd done.

Her wings pushed her into a crouch, and she took her sword in both hands. Ribbon's dash slowed, her arm lifting slightly in preparation to defend herself.

They didn't understand, Nixe told herself. They didn't know, they didn't accept it, they had blinded themselves to the truth her and the Luminon knew...

Baring her teeth, Nixe charged her sword. Even with its blade out of her sight, she could see the blinding corona that enveloped it.

Ribbon came to a stop, whipping up her streamer baton.

With a scream, Nixe pushed up with her legs and wings, swinging her weapon upward. The sword itself, not the blade of energy it projected, collided with Ribbon's body, carried her into the air. When Nixe reached the apex of her jump, that energy burst into an all-enveloping white, forceful enough to nearly unsteady Nixe herself in the air.

When she landed, the light faded...and amid a shower of gently-falling ethereal feathers, Ribbon crashed to the ground in front of her friends.

All four of them screamed in near-unison, " _Ribbon!_ "

As the three heroines hurried to Ribbon, the almiran ran past, a high-pitched leaving her throat as she began to throw wild, awkward punch after punch at Nixe. "How dare you!"

" _Arriete!_ " Machina screamed, springing to her feet.

Nixe just let Arriete attack, to no avail. "I will not let you hurt my friends any further! I will not let you take another human or Outsider! You monster! You monster! _You monster!_ "

Closing her eyes, Nixe imbued her sword with as little energy as she could. That was enough to strike Arriete to the ground, landing next to Ribbon. Nimbus sprang forward, coming between Nixe and the others, umbrella and eyes wide open and a furious scowl across her face.

"Ribbon, Ribbon!" Bounce shouted, grabbing a hold of her friend's shoulder. "Are you alright?"

Past the ether of the other heroines, Nixe could sense Ribbon's. She'd...never harmed any of them to the same extent, yet didn't sense Ribbon weakening any further. "Your friend will be fine," Nixe said, lowering her sword and letting it vanish from her hand. "I may not show her such mercy next time."

" _Mercy?_ " roared Nimbus, still in her defensive stance. "What do _you_ or the Luminon know about 'mercy'? Do you think you're doing anything good for _anyone_?"

As tempted as Nixe was to strike down Nimbus, there was no point in fighting any further. "You may have delayed one human's enlightenment, but soon the Luminon's light will cleanse all of Garden City."

Machina stood, her glare visible behind her holographic visor. "Whatever you and the Luminon are planning, we won't allow it! We won't stand by and let you hurt innocent people, hurt our friends and families!"

"If those you fought for were truly innocent," Nixe replied, "their inner darkness would not bring such chaos."

"You're the one responsible for this chaos!" Bounce said, hopping to her feet. "And we'll stop you, no matter what!"

Nixe forced a smirk and summoned her sword once more, prompting a flinch from Machina. But Nixe only took flight upwards, soaring towards the clouds.

She'd intended to slip away into Solis, to vanish from the heroines' sight. Part of her expected one of them to try to stop her escape, yet no such sneak-attack came.

Instead, she was soon alone, left with her thoughts. The smirk shrank away into a small frown, and her eyes closed as the winds whipped around her.

Her victories over the heroines didn't come with a sense of satisfaction or pride. This time was no different...and yet it had been. One scene played again and again in Nixe's mind: that moment when Ribbon slowly rose to her feet after checking on that boy...then charged at Nixe, summoning her weapon, preparing to fight.

Nixe slowed her flight, then dropped back towards the city below, to find somewhere she could slip back into society. To distract herself from her life—and from the life Dove had taken on.


	17. Fault

Nixe landed in the heart of downtown, swooping down into an alleyway to emerge as her ordinary self. By the time she'd reached a bus stop, winter's early dusk had turned the sky a pale-gold shade. She couldn't help but to think about Solis as she glanced up, and so she kept her eyes lowered as she boarded the bus.

As she took her seat, Nixe closed her eyes, feeling the bus roll along. It brought her no respite; once again, that memory flashed in her mind, of Ribbon charging at her.

Of course they fought, whenever they tried to stop one of the Luminon's clouds from abducting away another person. When there was someone to save, Ribbon clashed with Nixe as fiercely as the rest of the heroines. Sometimes they prevailed, and other times the cloud of light managed to swallow someone away before vanishing. The other heroines would sometimes throw a few more attacks at Nixe, but she would deal with those and the heroines with ease.

But Ribbon didn't keep fighting. Even as Nixe hurt her friends, Ribbon didn't join in. She did the same as she did when Nixe arrived to deal with a Without.

That hand held out, that gentle voice pleading with Nixe.

Not this time, though.

That face that Ribbon had borne as she ran at Nixe...had she ever shown such an expression before? Not quite fury, but there was anger...

It had looked so alien on the heroine's face. Nixe couldn't even imagine Elvie Radant from high school looking that way.

Today had been different.

Motion sickness mingled with something else in Nixe's stomach, yet she still couldn't bring herself to open her eyes. Was it...the boy? The one the Luminon had seemingly been trying to take? Was it how young such a would-be victim was that had made Ribbon attack? Had she realized it was a child underneath the slide?

She hadn't been different at first, though. Ribbon had spoken to her, the same sort of thing she always said, but after checking on the child, slowly rising to her feet...she hadn't said a word.

Nixe's throat constricted along with her stomach. Something was different this time, from all of the other times she'd fought with the heroines.

She hadn't known who any of them were.

And neither had the Luminon.

Her eyes sprang open. A gasp escaped her throat. And her stomach churned painfully—

A man sitting across from Nixe leaned forward. "Hey, you okay, kid?"

Nixe glanced up to him, but recoiled in her seat. Shaking her head, Nixe uttered, "No, no! I'm...I'm fine...

But she wasn't.

= ~ = ~ = ~ = ~ =

Her body still trembled as she stepped off of the bus, a few blocks from her house. She'd wanted to get home without drawing attention, but at this point, Nixe imagined few people would forget her presence on the bus tonight.

The sky had all but darkened; Nixe's father would have been furious, had he been home. Maybe it was for the best that he wasn't home. That her mom would be too drunk to worry about her daughter.

To ask questions about where she'd been, what had gotten her daughter so shaken, to notice that surely her daughter had been different these past few months—

The light that illuminated the sidewalk and Nixe's surrounded suddenly took on a deep red shade. The anxiety that burst from her throat as that light turned blue was drowned out by the howl behind her. Her feet slipped out from beneath her on the snowy sidewalk, and she sank into the snow along the walkway.

She stared at the police car as it picked up speed—it certainly didn't slow—and continued through the intersection ahead. Nixe sat still in the snow, panting, waiting until the glow of its light had faded and its sirens grew quieter. She'd...she'd...

Nixe pushed herself up, then glanced around. There were a few people around—they'd probably seen her fall. Would they think someone so startled by a police vehicle had expected the cops to be coming after _them_?

Was it only a matter of time, now that the heroines knew who she was? What she had done?

What if the police burst down her door, charged into her room? What would her mother think? That...

...Nixe couldn't risk it.

Her house wasn't much farther down the street. But Nixe turned in the opposite direction. The thought of subjecting her mother to that, to her daughter being hauled away—whether it was the cops, the heroines, or even Outsiders—for things her mother would never believe...

Nixe stopped to stifle a sob, and walked away from her home. She had to find somewhere secret, and when she remembered the nearby park—

—the same park she'd been brought to by the Luminon, after she'd first transformed into Dove—

—Nixe headed there immediately. Only a couple were cutting through the park when she arrived; once they were gone, one trembling hand rose to her chest and brought the bird out of its cage.

As her wings spread out, Nixe slashed open a portal into the Luminon's realm. She stared into the vortex of brilliant white, all too reminiscent of the white cloud that'd almost consumed that boy—of the one that'd stolen her away that fateful day, what seemed like another life ago.

Nixe took flight into the white, soaring through the swirling energies until she emerged over the plains of Solis. Shimmering spirits surrounded her as she landed. Happiness was all that resided here, free from the monsters that lingered in mortal hearts—or the ones given form by the Luminon's magic. What would become of that darkness, of that of all of Garden City's people, once the Luminon achieved their enlightenment?

But that wasn't what Nixe had come to Solis to question. "Luminon!"

Their presence appeared behind Nixe, no different than every other time they'd spoken. " _You have returned, Nixe._ "

Nixe turned to them, the swan-like, almost-angelic figure. The question she needed the answer to lingered on the tip of her tongue, yet she couldn't bring herself to make that accusation. "You...you aren't disappointed in my failure?"

" _It is unfortunate that the heroines have prevented another purification. But it will not change anything in the end. Your work will soon bring enlightenment to all in Garden City, including that young child of anima._ "

"T-that child...?" The sight of Ribbon kneeling by the boy flashed before Nixe's eyes... "Is...is there something special about him?"

" _He is no different from any other child of anima. You need not concern yourself further of him._ "

That wasn't an answer, and the Luminon knew it. "W-what aren't you telling me?" Nixe asked, a hand to her chest. This time, she saw that anger upon Ribbon's face once more—not rabid fury, but an anger with a purpose. A reason. An expression completely alien to the Ribbon that Nixe knew. "Why did Ribbon attack me this time? She always tries to talk to me, to convince me to turn away from—"

The Luminon's eyes met hers, and Nixe winced. " _The heroine allowed the darkness within her to overwhelm her will in that moment._ "

Yet that hadn't happened every other time. Even when she'd realized who Nixe was—and what Nixe had realized about her—Elvie hadn't sounded angry, or even scared. Elvie's cry hadn't been a demand, a command. It was the same pleading, hopeful voice as every other time they'd met...except their last.

Nixe looked back to the Luminon. "Why did you want me to find out who the heroines really are?"

" _I have answered this question once before._ "

That the Luminon would not even repeat their prior answer unsettled Nixe—as if they knew Nixe would not believe it now. She needed to know the truth, and though her heart seemed to rise towards her collarbones, Nixe finally forced out her deepest fear. "Luminon...that wasn't Elvie's brother, was it? Was it?"

The Luminon only stared at Nixe, their expression unchanging.

"Luminon!" Nixe cried out, her voice a near-shriek. "Answer me, please! That boy under the slide, that boy the heroines saved—he wasn't Elvie's brother, was he?"

Even before the Luminon spoke once more, Nixe knew the answer. There was no reason for them to hesitate if it wasn't true. There was no point to the evasiveness, the deception.

" _Yes. He is the brethren of Elvie Radant._ "

Nixe's heart seemed to shatter into a million frozen shards. It was like that unpleasant feeling whenever she spoke the word _Outsiders_ in the Luminon's presence. Yet this was entirely herself, her own apprehension and shock...and something more.

Lowering her head, closing her eyes until all she saw was Solis's blinding luminescence, Nixe uttered, "Why?"

" _Nixe, I seek to free all children of anima from the darkness that dwells within him. His youth does not make him any less unburdened, or any less deserving of escaping the darkness within others._ "

How terrified must he have been? What kind of wounds would it leave, having nearly been consumed by some magical cloud of light? Would it haunt him for the rest of his life, inspire fear and paranoia towards the magical?

Had everyone else that Nixe had helped the Luminon steal away felt the same fear?

"Every other time," Nixe said, her voice barely audible even to herself, "you've taken random people, from random places..."

The Luminon remained silent.

"But this time, you targeted _him_ specifically. Not anyone else in that park...him."

Nixe lifted her head, meeting the Luminon's stare. She couldn't make out any change in their face, yet at the same time, their glare had taken on a coldness that Nixe had never felt from the Luminon before.

The Luminon still didn't speak a word.

"You did, didn't you? Nixe continued. "You went after him...just because of his sister. Because of Elvie."

Her lips remained parted after those last three words. The cold from the shards of her shattered heart vanished into a black hole forming in Nixe's core, from that same place her magic emerged from.

It was because of Elvie, yes. But not just because of who his sister was. It wasn't Elvie's fault that the Luminon had tried to abduct him.

" _You have witnessed it yourself,_ " the Luminon said. " _To that heroine, the lives of others are unimportant. It is only when those she cares for that she feels such fury over our attempts to purify._ "

No...Elvie wouldn't fight if she considered other people "unimportant". Was that what the Luminon truly believed?

" _Look within your own heart, Nixe. You long for your parents to be purified, so that they would no longer suffer from the darkness within them. Do you not hold the same compassion for that young child of anima, merely because he is the brethren of your enemy?_ "

That black hole within Nixe seemed to collapse into itself further, leaving only a dense feeling within her. "You wanted...you wanted to hurt her. You...you shouldn't have..."

" _What did you say?_ "

Nixe recoiled from the Luminon's approach. Their shining eyes seemed to burn a hole straight through her soul. " _All we have done has been to free mortal hearts, so that they may exist in peace. Do you now seek to deny this enlightenment?_ "

What kind of peace had she brought that boy? What kind of peace had it brought Elvie, and his parents? How horrified would they be over how close he'd come to being taken from them—at the thought of losing him like that? What if he _had_ been taken? What would that failure have done to Elvie?

Tears welled in Nixe's eyes at the thought. The pain it would have brought Elvie to lose him, to have to face the Without he became. Knowing that he was taken from his family because of her, because of her fight against the Luminon.

No, it wouldn't have been Elvie's fault.

"You shouldn't have," Nixe repeated, unable to meet the Luminon's glare now.

" _Do you believe so, Nixe?_ "

"Yes!" Her voice cracked as it burst into a shout. "You...this isn't right! I don't want to be a part of something like this again!"

Her head sank, and uncomfortable silence fell over the realm, as if every spirit in this place was now watching Nixe—and judging her. But the Luminon would understand. They had to realize they'd gone too far.

It was only once she'd welled up the courage to face them once more that the Luminon answered.

" _You knew the truth of mortal hearts before we first met. I told you that the darkness within all could be banished once and for all._ " The Luminon stepped closer; Nixe recoiled. " _Yet it was not that hope that brought you to my side. It was your belief that it would bring you the happiness you always desired. Do not deny it, Nixe. It was not for the good of all that you made your choice to join me._ "

Nixe's hand trembled against her chest. "I-I—"

" _I have always seen into your heart, Nixe. I have watched your conflict over my ambitions, my means, and your role in them. It was your own desires that guided your heart._ "

Nixe shook her head, again and again. How many times had she needed to reassure herself that everything she did, everyone she hurt, would all be made up for with the peace that enlightenment would bring?

" _I understood this when we first met, with all I told you of my ambitions. Your heart is no less human than those I have purified. For all you doubted and questioned, your own desire was all that mattered to you in the end._ "

She could only stare, unable to speak, unable to even move.

" _Do not deny it now, Nixe. It was selfishness that guided your heart. It is selfishness over your own guilt that drives you to question me now._ "

The Luminon came even closer, and her eyes widening was all Nixe could manage.

" _If I were to open a tear in the veil between our worlds, a portal...in your own home, to bring your mother here to be purified...would you hesitate to carry out my will? To free this one mortal from the darkness you know?_ "

The mention of her own mom finally prompted Nixe to step away. As much as it might be for the best, as much as it'd be better than the alcohol she destroyed herself with to escape all the darkness in her life, Nixe's stomach twisted at such a thought—

The Luminon stepped back. " _I knew as much._ "

Her hands clutching together over her chest, Nixe whimpered, "Please...please don't..."

The Luminon's wings unfolded from around their body, spreading out like a majestic angel. " _In that moment we first met, I had hoped that you would understand my ambitions. But you are no less burdened by the failings of your kind, and have let yourself be blinded by the very darkness within your heart._ "

Their eyes opened wide, their golden orbs searing into Nixe's vision—leaving her suddenly unable to move a muscle.

" _Then I shall carry on alone, as I should have all along._ "

Those eyes seemed to burn straight into her chest, through her heart, into that place deeper than her physical core...the birdcage. Though the bird should have been free from its prison, the Luminon's glare seemed to coil around it, crushing it and Nixe's heart in a merciless grip that wrenched her off of the ground. Not a sound could escape her—even as it felt like her very soul was being torn asunder, like every single feather upon that ethereal bird was being torn out all at once.

Only when light began to bead over her body could Nixe finally scream, her shriek echoing in her ears, begging the horrifying sound she made now would convince the Luminon to stop, to have mercy, to not do this...

Then it was over.

And she felt _nothing_.

The force that had lifted her vanished. Her legs gave out beneath her the moment they touched the ground, and she collapsed onto her side. The world around her had turned into a blurred medley of colours, as if she could no longer perceive this place as she once had. In place of the once-limited power she'd known for so long was not a horrible lethargy, one that was still familiar. Like she'd woken from some terrible nightmare, long before morning, yet couldn't get back to sleep with how miserable she felt...

" _The day will come,_ " spoke the Luminon, " _when you shall return to Solis. I only wish that I could free you of your burden sooner, that the glint of magic within you did not force me to stay my hand._ "

Before she could muster the strength to stand, the ground beneath Nixe vanished into a swirling vortex of white. She tried to fly away from its pull, but couldn't make her wings even twitch. A weak scream left her throat as she plummeted into the abyss, for what seemed like an unending eternity.

Then she crashed upon solid ground beneath her, as if she'd been dropped from a few feet above. The cloud of light above shrank away, dissipating into sparkles that made the night sky look like it was full of stars—though the nearby streetlamps would have made the actual stars all but invisible.

The thought of standing didn't come to Nixe's mind at first. She could have laid there for hours, with how drained she felt. It wasn't mere weariness; it was the sort of listlessness Nixe had once known, in what had seemed like a lifetime ago, even if it had been mere months. As if her body refused to see the point of pulling herself out of bed, of trudging through the same motions once more.

The rapid honking of a car horn alerted her, and she pushed herself up before the headlights of vehicles on both sides. One car's lights flicked off seconds later, the engine silencing a moment after. The driver scrambled out of the vehicle, running to the sidewalk and away from Nixe.

Other people were running away, too. Some stood still, staring with looks of bewilderment or unease. Did they... _know_ who she was was? That she was the Luminon's messenger? The traitor "heroine"?

She couldn't stand to be before so many eyes, and so she bolted from the street.


	18. Hand

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please note: This chapter contains a scene which may be uncomfortable or distressing to some readers.

Nixe didn't stop running until she realized the silhouette of the building before her. A strong winter wind blew over her as she looked up to Eden High School, tall against the moonlit sky like a monument to the terror that had plagued Garden City ever since that fateful day.

Once, Nixe would have denied any attachment to the place. All she'd wanted was to be finished with it, to close that chapter of her life so she could take flight into one of her own writing. Perhaps the foundation of that life would be uneven and cracked, but it'd be her own life to build, to repair.

But Eden High hadn't been an hour's bus ride away. It wasn't an unfamiliar place filled with unfamiliar people. It was plainer, smaller than Amaryllis High, but that had made it more comfortable to Nixe. There had always been the dread of other students finding out about how things were for her at home, but that was nothing compared to the burden of her new secret.

Her running hadn't left her tired, yet she still felt so weak and heavy. As Nixe lowered her head, she gazed at one hand. Her gloves were shorter now, as they were when she'd first transformed. Glancing over her shoulder, she saw that her six large wings were gone, leaving only the ornamental wings on the back of her outfit.

It wasn't just the Luminon taking back the power they'd given Nixe, though.

She headed to the back of the school, not bothering to check if she was being watched. Despite the feeling of weariness, Nixe was still able to jump up to the lower roofs and climb to the top of the building—just as she had the night she'd betrayed the heroines. Nixe collapsed against part of the ventilation system, long inactive. No one would find her here.

She hoped.

Nixe closed her eyes. She missed Eden High. She missed walking to school, stopping at the library before going home. She missed her usual teachers, even if she rarely said a word in class. Would Eden High ever be reopened? Would she see that happen?

She missed her life. Before everything. Before magic.

Nixe shook her head to herself. Was it a life? She'd merely been going through the motions, biding time until the day she no longer had to. The only thing keeping her going had been the mere _hope_ that she could put herself together once all of it was over with.

That was why she'd made that choice that night, wasn't it? Why she'd betrayed the heroines, allowed the Luminon to steal another victim away.

For herself.

The Luminon was right. That almiran had been right. All of this had been for Nixe herself. Her own hopes. She'd convinced herself that she was doing the right thing...all while she stole people away from the ones who loved them, allowed the Luminon to turn them into monsters that only hurt and terrified more people. If she hadn't known the Luminon's reasoning, had clung to it, what would she have thought? How scared would she have been? Who would she have blamed for everything?

Arriete's words repeated in her head, from that night they'd clashed. That night Nixe had destroyed some innocent person's car, all out of her own fury at being called out. For what Nixe had always known was true.

She'd been so desperate to escape the "life" she knew that she'd never questioned the Luminon's vision. Nixe hadn't always understood fully, and often had her doubts, but followed through nonetheless. Her actions, she'd felt guilty about, but she'd forced her own convictions, made herself believe it was all worth it. Even if all the Luminon aspired for came true, would all the pain they'd caused be worth it?

Nixe had believed in the Luminon...even as they'd misguided her, had fed her half-truths so she wouldn't be turned away immediately. The Luminon had admitted as much, and yet Nixe had still joined them. Their good intentions—no, Nixe's selfish desperation—had convinced Nixe of the good in their work. And despite her unease about it, she'd ultimately decided to give them Ribbon's identity, telling herself that they'd never do wrong with it.

That the Luminon would target Elvie's brother, just to hurt her...

Nixe started to sob. She should have seen it. It didn't matter what the Luminon believed, what the end result would have been—even if it would have made Nixe happy. They couldn't be allowed to continue, to achieve their "enlightenment". Everyone they'd hurt pursuing that goal...everyone Nixe had hurt in her service to the Luminon...

...it'd all been for nothing.

She fell over onto her side, her sobs drowning out the sounds of traffic on the nearby roads. Steady streams of tears flowed down her face. All the people the Luminon had taken...could they be returned to normal? What if stopping the Luminon _didn't_ save them? If their loss was forever on Nixe's hands? As happy as they'd seemed in Solis, would they be horrified to learn of what had become of their true selves, of what the Luminon was doing? Or had they only seemed happy because they'd been purged of the ability to feel otherwise? Could they even understand what their friends and family were going through without them?

...what if the heroines _hadn't_ prevailed last night? If Elvie's brother had been taken? If she'd completely broken Ribbon's spirit, as the Luminon must have intended?

Nixe covered her face. She didn't want to think about any of this anymore.

Yet nothing else remained for her but these thoughts, and they continued to linger as she wept.

= ~ = ~ = ~ = ~ =

The sun rose the next morning, but Nixe remained lying on the Eden High rooftop, trapped in her thoughts.

An hour after dawn, Nixe finally pushed herself up onto her feet.

Nothing would change what she'd done. How she'd torn apart her own life, how she'd abandoned her mother. Her mom must have been worried sick, and yet Nixe hadn't cared, even if she'd told herself that all she'd done was so they could be a happy family.

She'd have to tell her mom the truth. Apologize for everything. For having become such a terrible, heartless person.

But that would have to wait. There was one thing more important to do. Her body felt weighed down by her very soul as she dropped from the rooftops, returning the bird to its cage once she was on the ground. As her feet set down, the freezing wind struck her face like an icy wing slapping her across her cheeks. Her body shivered, not only from the cold, as she walked to the nearest bus stop.

The last bit of change on her was enough for bus fare. The bus she took downtown passed by Amaryllis High, just as a school bus pulled away from the building. Nixe's stomach sank thinking about how many others in there had been touched by her actions. How many might have lost friends and family, grown fearful and hateful of those who didn't deserve it...

Nixe got off at the next stop; she didn't want to be too far from Amaryllis High. She wandered through back alleys until she found one building with a fire escape up to the roof. One hand rose to her chest; this time, it felt like she had to pry the cage door open and lift the bird onto her finger to cast it into the air. Once she'd transformed, she climbed up to the rooftop. That day she'd first run around in her magical form, jumping between buildings...it'd be impossible now with all the snow, but that wasn't what she was here for.

She walked to the edge of the rooftop, peering down. It must have been about ten stories down to the street below. Pedestrians spotted her, glancing up and pointing. None of them seemed panicked; maybe they didn't recognize her as the Luminon's messenger, rather than a genuine heroine.

The more who noticed Nixe here, the more likely that _she_ would come. So Nixe stood in silence, staring down into the street, biding her time in reflection. Considering her words.

Her apology. And her plea.

= ~ = ~ = ~ = ~ =

It was when the sun, cloaked behind the dreary grey of the winter sky, neared its summit that the voice Nixe had waited for finally came. It rang out from behind her, as clear as day, over the din of the traffic below.

"Dove!"

A silent gasp parted Nixe's lips. Her eyes widened.

She stood motionless for several seconds more, provoking the voice to call out again. "Dove!"

Nixe slowly glanced over her shoulder, just to be certain. Of course, the voice belonged to her. The one Nixe had been waiting for.

Yet it wasn't the voice that Nixe had hoped to hear.

Nixe turned her body to face Ribbon. The heroine stood before her on the roof, the lavender eyes behind the mask narrowed upon Nixe. Her right hand, the one that had been held out to Nixe so many times before, held her streamer baton by her side with a firm grip. She didn't stand in a loose posture, her guard open, but as I she was ready to react at a moment's notice.

Yet none of that was a surprise to Nixe. Her call had come without a hint of the warmth that she knew from Ribbon's voice, all of the other times she'd spoken Dove's name. Or even in that encounter as their real selves.

"Dove," Ribbon said, "what's going on? What does the Luminon have planned?"

Before, her voice had almost been pleaded. Ribbon had wanted Dove to take her hand in peace. Elvie had wanted Nixe to come back to her, not out of hate or anger. Now...it was like an entirely different Ribbon was speaking to her.

"Dove," Ribbon repeated, "is another Without about to awaken? Where?"

Elvie had offered her hand so many times before...and Dove had plunged her blade through it in giving away her secret to the Luminon. It was Nixe's fault that her brother had fallen before the Luminon's eyes.

"Dove!"

Nixe closed her eyes. She lowered her head. She'd waited for Ribbon, hoping to confess all of her sins. To finally take the hand that had been offered so many times before, even as the other heroines stood ready to attack.

That hand wasn't there for her anymore.

Tears began to slip between her eyelids, and Nixe tightened them in a futile bid to stop them from flowing.

"Dove?"

Of course it wasn't.

"Ri...Rib..." Nixe choked back a sob. Her hands pressed against her empty chest. She wished she had the strength to look the heroine in the eyes as she spoke. "El-Elvie...please...please tell your brother I'm sorry."

She held her breath. Her foot reached backward, until it found the edge of the roof—and pushed herself off of it.

The rest of her body followed into nothingness.

" _DOVE!_ "

The scream rang through the air even as it grew more distant, as the wind rushed around Nixe's body and ears. A tight discomfort formed around Nixe's midsection as she plummeted.

The side of her body collided into solid ground. Yet she drifted away from the surface...? And...and hadn't she fallen backwards...

She opened her eyes, to the brick wall next to her, the lifeless sky above...and the golden band reaching over the edge of the roof. Ribbon appeared, clutching the length of ribbon and pulling. As Ribbon and the rooftop nearer, Ribbon let out a loud cry as she yanked Nixe over, flinging her body into the snow upon the middle of the roof.

Her body tumbled until she came to rest upon her back, Nixe's eyes staring up to the dull glow of the sun behind the dreary sky.

"Dove!" came Ribbon's voice, over crunching footsteps. "I'm sorry—are you...are you..."

The heroine fell to her knees by Nixe's side, her lavender eyes now wide and unblinking upon Nixe. Ribbon panted, even though Nixe knew such an effort shouldn't have taken a physical toll upon her.

"D-Dove...?" came Ribbon's cracking voice, soft and warm.

Nixe closed her eyes. "Why...why did you..."

A pair of arms pried Nixe out of the snow and against Ribbon's body. "W-w-w...why did..."

All that followed from Ribbon were her heavy breaths. "Ribbon..." Dove said softly, aware that she had resumed her own breathing. Aware that she was still on the rooftop, rather than the street below. Aware that she was...

"Dove." Ribbon's hand found Nixe's. "Dove, are you okay?"

Nixe opened her eyes. She glanced to Ribbon's, then looked away. The answer lingered in her throat, but she couldn't speak it.

"Dove, please..." Her hold on Dove's hand tightened, not as if she was trying to keep her from getting away. "Ever...everything that's happened, everything y..." Ribbon paused, taking a deep breath before continuing. "P-please, Dove...help us. Help us stop the Luminon. Help us bring back everyone they've taken. Please..."

There it was...what Nixe had been waiting for. Her hope for repentance. Her selfish desire for herself.

"With everything you must know...I'm sure you can help us stop the Luminon." Her other hand wrapped around Nixe's. "P-please, Dove...please help..."

Nixe pulled her hand loose from Ribbon's, prompting a squeak-like noise from the heroine—one still soft and very confused. She still couldn't bring herself to look at the girl beside her. To take a place alongside the heroines, as if nothing she'd done mattered? Like they could simply ignore the past, what she'd done to them? Her attacks, her taunts, her betrayal? What she'd done to Elvie herself?

A hand rested gently upon her shoulder. "Dove..."

A shape emerged from the edge of the rooftop, soaring above Nixe's vision. Ribbon's gasp drowned out Nixe's own startled noise, and the heroine drew away slightly from her as large bird-like feet plunged into the snow before Nixe. More sounds landed around them, and as Nixe tried to push herself up with one hand, a crushing grip closed around her other arm.

"Wh...wh..." Ribbon stammered, springing to her feet.

Five bird-men Outsiders stood upon the rooftop, bearing hawk-like faces of silvery and tan plumage, clad in bronze-looking armour, with fierce eyes focused upon Nixe. Two more avalerions soared up, bringing with them a different Outsider who held onto their arms until they landed. This one was some kind of insect-woman, clad in a white dress, bearing bizarre buggy eyes, four arms, and large bright-orange butterfly wings—why did the avalerions need to carry her up if she had wings herself?

Another clawed hand seized Nixe's other arm, twisting it behind her back. The butterfly-woman approached steadily. "Nixe Fulton," she said, "under the authority of the Outsider Enforcement—"

Nixe's heart jumped in her chest, a gasp escaping her before she squeaked out, "W-wai...how do...how do you know my..." She glanced to Ribbon, who still looked as shocked as Nixe herself.

"—we are taking you into custody of the Guardant," the butterfly-woman continued. "Will you surrender and come peacefully?"

"What's going on?" Ribbon shouted, looking between Nixe and all of the Outsiders present. "Please, wait!"

Nixe bowed her head. It shouldn't have come as a surprise. The government, magical beings...one way or another, they would have found out. Maybe Elvie herself had told them her identity...not that Nixe could blame her at this point. What else would anyone have done if they knew everything she was responsible for.

With a small nod, Nixe said, "Yes. I'll come."

A strange tingling energy rose up her arms and spread through her body, numbing all of her senses and leaving her barely able to move a muscle. She vaguely heard Ribbon protesting, but as the blurred scene before her started to jostle, Nixe's thoughts became as dulled as the perception of the world. She realized she was being carried into the air, but that was her last thought before she slipped into something that felt almost like sleep.


	19. Night

Thin tendrils that tipped the Outsider's ears coiled through the air, their ends resting upon Nixe's temples. The creature would have been hovering before her face, its crystalline wings motionless despite its levitation, had Nixe's head not been lowered.

"That is all you know of this being that calls itself the Luminon?" asked the second Outsider in the room—an odona, just like Anise, though this one had a more male appearance, dressed in a simple turtleneck sweater and slacks, with a bluish tint to the hair beneath the dream-eater upon him.

"It is. I swear."

She noticed the floating Outsider's wings glow, from the blue illumination they cast upon the floor beneath them. The creature was almost like a koala bear, save for its much-shorter limbs and large pointed tendril-tipped ears. Nixe figured the glow was like the lights on a lie-detector; though she wondered what a wrong answer would give, she had no desire to give any falsehoods now.

"And last, this dimension the Luminon resides in, what you called 'Solis'—how was it that you travelled into this place?"

"It was a power the Luminon gave to me," Nixe said. "But they took that power back. I don't have it anymore."

"I see," said the odona. After a second, the tendrils lifted from her forehead, shrinking into small nubs on the floating Outsider's ears. Its fur seemed just like its wings, blue and crystalline, like very fine needles that'd be painful to the touch.

The odona walked to the door, while the other Outsider drifted over to him. "That will be all for now. I will report to my superiors."

Someone on the other side opened the thick door, and the two Outsiders departed. With an echoing boom, the door slammed shut, leaving Nixe alone in the cell.

That was what this room obviously was. Everything after being taken from the rooftop was a hazy blur, up until she'd awoken on the bed in this empty chamber. There were no windows, no indication of where she was...other than a familiar nexus of swirling energies nearby, telling her that she was near the portal between worlds. The Outsider Embassy, perhaps? Humans had been among the other Outsiders who'd given soft-spoken questions and sharp-voiced demands for answers.

Nixe sat down on the edge of the bed, the only thing within the cell. Perhaps they weren't intended for the sort of people who needed toilets. The walls were a near-white, the door a thick metal covered with faintly-glowing sigils. She didn't approach closer to investigate, and whatever power they held to contain prisoners, Nixe didn't intend to test it.

How late was it now? Was it evening yet? The second night that she wouldn't be home? Her mom must have been so worried...if she didn't already know the truth. If she even cared about her daughter after everything Nixe had done.

Maybe it would be for the best if her mom knew, and wanted nothing to do with her anymore.

Nixe lowered her head once more. She hated every second that passed in-between interrogations, when her thoughts flooded into the silence and there was nothing to force them from her mind.

She didn't even notice the cell door open until footsteps echoed from its direction.

A woman stood in the doorway, with neat brown hair and a luxurious-looking white suit. Behind her was Elvie—not even her magical self, just ordinary Elvie Radant. Her hair was loose today, though ribbons were still entwined into bracelets around her wrists. The woman bore a serious expression, while Elvie's eyes were...solemn? Sorrowful?

Disappointed?

The moment her and Elvie's stares met, Nixe forced her head downward.

"Nixe Fulton?" asked the woman.

Nixe didn't look up.

"Miss Fulton," the woman continued, "my name is Faye Brice. I'm an ambassador here at the Outsider Embassy. Would you be willing to come to my office to discuss this matter further?"

Her office? Not here, contained in the cell where she belonged?

Before Nixe could answer, Elvie stepped forth. "Please, Dove?"

Nixe glanced to Elvie. She owed it to her, in more ways than one. Without a word, Nixe pulled herself to her feet.

= ~ = ~ = ~ = ~ =

"Please," Mrs. Brice said, "take a seat, Miss Fulton. Or would you prefer if I called you 'Dove'?"

"Either's fine." Nixe glanced around the office as Elvie closed the door behind them. Along with desks and filing cabinets, the Ambassador's office was decorated with curious art-pieces—small sculptures of odd creatures, a portrait of a butterfly-winged person with four arms wrapped around a humanoid figure, some kind of bracelet of silvery feathers atop a cabinet, and an orb that looked both metallic and crystalline that stood perfectly still on the center of the desk even as Mrs. Brice rested her arms upon the oak.

Elvie didn't take one of the chairs before Mrs. Brice. Instead, she stood beside the desk, her hands together. One finger tapped her hand rapidly, something Nixe couldn't draw her eyes away from.

Several seconds of silence passed, with only faint noises of traffic beyond the dark window to Nixe's right filling the air. Finally, the Ambassador spoke. "During your questioning, Elvie was talking with me about you. About your previous encounters with her and her fellow heroines, and about your encounter on the rooftop today."

If Elvie was here as herself, not as Ribbon, did that mean... "You...have you know who the heroines were? Who I was?"

Nixe noticed Elvie's hands tightening together. Mrs. Brice's gaze lowered to the surface of her desk. "It...it wasn't an easy choice for me to make. But after one of the heroines declared herself an ally of whoever was responsible, we decided to authorize measures to identify and reach out to the new heroines protecting the city. We identified the four who were fighting against the Luminon...and you."

"H-how long did you know?"

"Only a few weeks. We pieced together what information we could obtain without arousing suspicion or concern. Keeping any possible suspects confidential among those approved was of utmost importance. We even worked with City Hall to bar the Garden City Police Department from investigating your identity, Dove."

There was some relief that the police hadn't figured out who she was...even if they had _wanted_ to. But just how close had they come to knocking down her door?

That only brought to mind another fear. "Do...do my parents know? Did you tell them anything?"

Mrs. Brice shook her head. "We haven't told your parents anything."

Nixe still didn't know what was for the best. Her mom was probably worried sick about her...if not drinking enough to wipe any thought of her missing daughter from her mind.

"If you knew who I was," Nixe asked, "why didn't you try to stop me until now?"

"We were concerned about public reaction to an Outsider force, given current distrust." Hadn't Arriete mentioned that? "The heroines were capable of stopping the creatures of the Luminon's creation, and protecting the city. But yesterday..."

Mrs. Brice's voice trailed off. Nixe glanced away, not wanting to see Elvie in her vision—not when she couldn't even squeak out the apology Elvie deserved.

"One of the other heroines told me what had happened," Mrs. Brice continued, "and we decided to take action. When reports came in that you were seen downtown, we suspected something was in the works and made our preparations. Of course, Elvie found you before the Guardant could carry out their plans..."

Uncomfortable silence set over the room once more, if briefly. "Which brings us to now, here," said Mrs. Brice. "Elvie told me about what happened on the rooftop, before the Guardant arrived."

"Dove," Elvie said, her voice more timid than the confidence Nixe was used to hearing from her. "Please, help us against the Luminon, against the Withouts. Everything that's happened, with you and the Luminon, between you and us...please, set that aside. Will you join us, please?"

How...how could Elvie of all people ask her to ignore everything she'd done to them? To innocent people? How was her brother coping with what had nearly happened to him? Would the other heroines accept the one who time and time again had mocked them, hurt them, prevented them from protecting innocent people? How could Nixe have ever expected forgiveness from them?

How could Elvie offer it?

Nixe wanted to cry, and felt so close to it. But who would she be weeping for? Herself. The one person who deserved it least.

Elvie approached, placing a hand on the back of Nixe's chair. "Dove," she said, "the only important thing is stopping the Luminon from harming more people. I..." It was clearly a struggle for her nonetheless. "I know you can do the right thing. Please, Dove...help us."

Maybe it wasn't forgiveness. What Nixe had done couldn't be forgiven. Perhaps she was just being pragmatic. No matter how she really felt about Nixe, having her join them against the Luminon only made sense. Even if Nixe would have never trusted herself in a million years.

Mrs. Brice spoke up. "If I might note...even now, deliberations are being made in light of your actions. Helping the heroines would likely reflect positively upon those discussions."

Of course her fate was being decided. Even if Elvie and the heroines could look back all she'd done, she'd still hurt so many people, caused so much damage. She needed to answer for that. But Elvie was right, wasn't she? What really mattered now was stopping the Luminon. Trying to undo even an iota of the pain and grief she'd wrought—not for herself and whatever mercy it might bring her, but for everyone she'd hurt.

Nixe tried to sit up straight, but still held her head slumped forward. "I'll do it," Nixe said, in a voice she thought neither of them could hear. "I'll help you stop the Luminon."

"Thank you, Nixe," Elvie said, stepping back. "Thank you." The smile Nixe spotted when she glanced up wasn't as large as she had expected from Elvie.

Mrs. Brice sorted some papers on her desk. "That settles that, for the time being at least. Elvie, I have some matters to discuss with Miss Fulton privately for a moment, okay?"

Elvie nodded. She flashed another smile, one without her usual spirit, as she walked out of the room.

As the door closed, Nixe suddenly felt so very alone. She didn't want to acknowledge the woman before her, the situation she was in.

"Nixe."

"Mrs. Brice..."

"Faye's fine." The Ambassador leaned forward on her desk for a moment, then rose from her seat instead and took the chair next to Nixe. Nixe shifted her body away from Mrs. Brice. "I want to talk with you about today. Elvie told me what had happened."

Nixe didn't respond.

Her voice low, Mrs. Brice said, "Nixe, I apologize if this is uncomfortable for me to ask, but...did you really intend to..."

She couldn't say it. Neither could Nixe. Neither could Nixe deny it.

A brief pause followed. "Nixe...I can get you in touch with psychologists, therapists here in Garden City. I can promise you your anonymity. I can assure you that anything you say will be kept highly confidential."

Nixe wished they weren't having this converation. "Why do you care?" she asked, her voice so quiet that she didn't expect the Ambassador to hear.

"Because you're just a kid," came the response, nearly as soft as Nixe's own voice. "I know it feels like the weight of the world is on your shoulders, and having turned your back on the Luminon, for whatever reasons you had for joining them..." Mrs. Brice fell silent for a moment. "Some of the strongest people I know have needed this kind of thing, and it's helped them immensely."

Nixe shook her head ever so slightly. "No, thank you."

"Are you certain?" Nixe nodded. "Okay." Mrs. Brice rose from her chair. "But if you reconsider, I'll do everything I can to help. Okay?"

Nixe only shrank further into her chair as the Ambassador returned to her seat behind the desk. "What's going to happen after...all of this?"

"What do you mean?" asked Mrs. Brice.

"To...to me. What will you do with me?"

"It's...much too early to say such."

A chill sank through Nixe's core. "You said deliberations were being made?"

Mrs. Brice frowned, lowering her eyes to her desk for a moment. "Most of those who oversee the peace between our worlds, both human and Outsider, alongside law enforcement officials here in Garden City...they do want you to be held accountable for your actions, in some way. Some of them would rather see you incarcerated immediately, rather than being allowed to help now."

A feeling of weakness seeped through Nixe's limbs, despite being in her magical form. "I see."

"I believe that you want to help us stop the Luminon," the Ambassador said. "As long as you cooperate with us and the other heroines, I'll do everything in my power to support you. But once the Luminon's threat has ended...I can't say what might happen after that."

 _If_ they could stop the Luminon. "I see," Nixe uttered. "Can I go now?"

Mrs. Brice stood. "You should shift back before you leave. And Nixe...get yourself home. Take care of yourself. And please, please don't forget what I said earlier—that door is always open for you if you decide you need it."

Nixe didn't dare let Mrs. Brice know that she intended to do none of those things. She bid the bird back into its cage—thinking, as her feet lifted from the floor and light enveloped her, if it would be best for that cage to be locked up for good. For the bird within to be sealed away...or even taken from the cage for good.

Once she was an ordinary teenage girl, Nixe walked out of the Ambassador's office without a word. Mrs. Brice led the way to the exit, through a lobby filled with humans and various Outsiders. Nixe felt their stares upon her. Surely they knew who she was; how couldn't they judge her? How much trouble she'd caused for them, people who simply wished to make things work between both worlds?

Mrs. Brice held the door open for Nixe. The sun had all but set, with flurries drifting down from the darkening sky. Cars zoomed past in the slush-filled street, while the occasional pedestrian mushed through the gathering snow upon the sidewalk. Something was spoken behind Nixe, but she paid no heed to it as she walked down the steps to the pavement.

As she looked up to the sky, wondering what she would do with herself now, a voice called out to her left. "Nixe!"

Nixe's stomach froze at the sound of her voice, and turned even colder when she turned to Elvie. "Nixe," she asked, "do you have a moment?"

Nixe stared at her, at the wide eyes, the absence of any smile or cheer upon her face. Perhaps once, she might have been joyful to have finally convinced Dove to abandon the Luminon's side. Now, after all that had happened.

Turning away, Nixe started walking down the sidewalk.

Elvie hurried after her. "Nixe, I just want to talk for a second!"

A small shake of her head was the most Nixe could muster. Bringing herself to face Elvie was beyond her. "I don't."

She continued down the sidewalk, into the snowy night. To her relief, Elvie didn't follow. Traffic continued on by, both alongside her and down the road. Ordinary people going on with their ordinary lives. Maybe they did hold dark emotions and thoughts within their hearts, but however flawed they were, whether they brought harm to others intentionally or hurt others with them realizing it...it was nothing compared to what Nixe had done for the Luminon. For herself.

She felt like crying once more, but the tears wouldn't come. She didn't deserve them.

Maybe Elvie was still following, at a distance. Still concerned about her. Nixe wished she hadn't been, from the very beginning, up to that moment today...

But it wasn't about her now. What mattered was ending all of this. Stopping the Luminon. That would be her purpose, her hope. After that...

Pulling her hood up, Nixe walked on, hoping to simply disappear into the night.


	20. Strands

A new day rose in Garden City. Sunlight bathed parallel streets of downtown, giving the lingering snow an almost-golden brilliance and bringing a glisten to the wet pavement. The morning traffic began to pick up, with more bodies on the sidewalk and more vehicles making their commute. A few yellow buses were among the bustle; one of them had to be the one Nixe used to take from her neighbourhood, headed for Amaryllis High. She stopped each time one passed by, staring, wondering if anyone within had noticed her absence. If anyone wondered where she was, what had happened to her. If she was the topic of discussion and gossip at school. If maybe people had put the pieces together and figured out she was one of the heroines…if not _that_ “heroine”.

As she watched one school bus disappear from sight, a faint pulse brushed against her senses, something her human ones tried to parse as best as they could. A thump in her ears, a brush against her skin, a corona of light around her vision. Nixe brought a hand to her forehead, the sensation feeling like the onset of a migrane, but it soon passed.

She knew what it meant.

Nixe bolted down the closest alleyway. Without bothering to check around her, she slowed to a stop, bringing a hand to her chest. That inner bird hopped out onto her hand, and she cast it aloft as her feet rose from the ground.

When they landed once more, clad in white feathered boots, Nixe raced out of the alley and down the sidewalk, in the direction she’d sensed that pulse of energy from. Her pace slowed as it dawned on her what would await her there—not the Without, but those who would soon follow…

That dread didn’t bring her to a stop, and once she reached a street full of stationary vehicles, Nixe ran onto the road towards the intersection ahead. As she approached, a winged figure rose up above the cars, long strands dangling from some part of its body behind it.

Once she was close enough, Nixe skidded to a halt, realizing what the figure was.

It wasn’t the humanoid body that possessed wings, but the large dragonfly-like thing latched onto the figure’s head. The wings beat rapidly, leaving faint grey afterimages in the air around them. Blank pink eyes glared upon Nixe, a stare devoid of any apparent emotion. The body that dangled beneath the dragonfly-thing was clad in silk, like it’d been tangled and spun about in some massive spider-web.

Without any doubt, Nixe knew this was an odona Without.

The strands dangling from the tail of the dragonfly-thing were wound around several humans in the street below the Without. None of them moved, even though the silk didn’t bind or restrict their bodies. Panic filled their faces, but only a few gave weak, feeble cries.

Whatever the Without had done to them, Nixe thought as she summoned her sword, she needed to free them first. She dashed forward as light enveloped the Without’s hands, bolts of energy striking the pavement around Nixe as she wove and dodged. The people caught in the Without’s silk remained still until Nixe slashed through the connecting strands, at which point they tumbled to the street, motionless.

The monster’s tail arced around its side, firing a torrent of white silk at Nixe. She jumped aside just in time, slashing through more fibers that held the other victims upright. If only she could lure the Without away from them…

Once the last person was cut loose, Nixe spun to face the Without. Not wanting to get caught herself, she charged her energy into her blade, its length shining with white light. Leaping up to get a clear angle at the Without, she let out a cry and swung her sword.

But she landed mid-swing, off-balance, tripping forward and catching herself with her free hand. She hadn’t stayed in the air as she’d expected. With her concentration broken, the ether welled in her sword ebbed away. Nixe drew her arm back, preparing to charge her blade once more.

The odona Without fired more silk at her, before Nixe was ready to strike. The strands arced past her torso and wove around her sword-arm, as if each one was guided with perfect precision. A scream escaped her throat as the silk tightened around her limb, like a solid cast that locked her arm in place. “Wh…”

Another blast of silk fired towards her, but Nixe ran to the side—until the silk binding her arm pulled tight and her momentum nearly brought her crashing to the ground. She couldn’t move her arm, no matter how hard she tried. She had to cut herself loose. Her sword vanished from her right hand, her fingers frozen in place as if still wrapped around the grip, while her left grasped her sword, raising it to slash—

—then her right arm extended out, into her blade’s path, blocking the strands of silk.

Nixe’s eyes widened, and her throat flared as another torrent of silk struck her center-mass. It wound and wrapped around her like some creeping ivy ensnaring her. She shrieked, praying her wings would emerge and tear away the silk. But they were gone—she remembered that now. That was why she hadn’t stayed in the air.

And now, her body refused to respond to anything she tried to do, except for her strained grunts and panicked whimpers.

“Stop!”

Nixe knew that voice, but couldn’t place it until she sensed the familiar ether. Her stomach plummeted as the figure raced atop stalled cars behind the Without, floppy ears bouncing with each hop. The almiran—what was her name again—jumped high into the air, her fist crackling with energy.

Before Nixe could shout out any sort of warning, the almiran dove down—and the Without easily weaved out of the way, the almiran landing just in front of Nixe.

Nixe felt her left arm swing out, without any thought on her part.

“No!” Nixe cried out, just as her blade struck the almiran’s back, knocking her to the ground. She couldn’t move a muscle—yet this Without could manipulate her like a puppet.

A thick torrent of silk caught the almiran, yanking her to her feet. “What is this?” screamed the rabbit-Outsider, in a voice that suggested she’d be flailing her limbs in desperation to escape. “Let me go! Let me go!”

As much as she tried to force her body to move, to muster her magical energy in some way to free herself, nothing Nixe tried or thought made her budge an inch. What did the Without want? What sort of inner darkness drove it to control people’s bodies like this?

“Arriete!”

That voice came from the jersey-clad heroine who’d appeared between the stationary cars. Machina and Nimbus followed, with Ribbon shouting as she emerged. “Dove!”

“Help!” screamed Arriete, as she stepped to her side, in front of where the Without landed. Nixe’s body too was moved into place to block the heroines. “Help, I cannot move! She is making me move! Help!”

“We have to free them!” Ribbon shouted. “Bounce, Machina—keep the Without distracted, but be careful! Nimbus, come on!”

As the four heroines advanced, Nixe did too, without a thought of her own. Dodgeballs and beams of energy arced over Nixe and Arriete, but the Without weaved away with ease before firing rapid pulses of magic in return.

While Nimbus went for Arriete, Ribbon hurried towards Nixe. “Hold still!” Ribbon cried, swinging her ribbon baton.

Nixe’s left arm jerked up, her sword blocking the ribbon. “I can’t!” Nixe replied, trying in vain to keep her sword-arm from stopping each swing of the yellow lash. Ribbon’s eyes widened, but she dove out of the way of the blast of silk just in time. Another torrent was blocked by Nimbus’s umbrella, which faded into light along with the trail of silk as Nimbus tossed it away.

Behind Ribbon, Machina dashed to the side, jets in the heels of her boots boosting her out of the way of the energy blasts following her. She stopped just out of Nixe’s vision to her left, and Nixe heard her say, “Come on…!”

A blast of vivid green fired above Nixe, casting a glow over the street below. The beam seared through most of the silk that held Nixe, almost dropping her body to the ground. One hand stretched out automatically to stop her fall, but couldn’t push her upright before Ribbon jumped up, swinging her streamer baton. Nixe fell over, the severed strands falling onto the pavement before her. Her body still wouldn’t respond. All she could do was watch from the ground as Nimbus lunged past Arriete, blocking a blast of silk with her umbrella before spinning it fast enough that it slashed through the silk tethering the almiran like a circular saw. She then pointed the end towards Arriete, releasing a whirlwind that blew the remaining silk loose from Arriete’s body.

The four heroines and Arriete spread out, with Ribbon bashing beneath the airborne Without—alongside a second Ribbon that moved like a reflection, drawing several of the Without’s attacks. The real Ribbon caught the Without’s ankle with her baton, while the other three heroines took aim. A sustained bolt of lightning, a blast of emerald light strong enough to jerk Machina’s arm back, and a dodgeball that seemed wreathed in swirling flames all struck the Without in unison, erupting in a bust of magical energy that flung the Without to the edge of the intersection.

As light enveloped the Without’s form, the silk around Nixe’s body faded away, along with that remaining on the nearby humans. It took a few seconds for Nixe to push herself halfway-up, her body still feeling like a sack of potatoes.

“Arriete!” Nimbus said, running over to the almiran as she stood up.

“I am fine,” answered Arriete, her voice lacking her usual spirit. “Thanks to all of you.”

The glow faded from the Without’s body, leaving an Outsider’s form in its wake. Could it be…?

Ribbon ran over to Nixe, holding out a hand. “Dove, are you okay? Can you move now?”

Nixe ignored the hand, standing up straight and slowly walking forward. “What was she trying to do?” Machina asked. “She could control people’s bodies, but for what ends?”

“I did not see what happened at first,” Arriette said. “Dove was here, already caught by the silk. She struck me down, then I was caught too.”

“That wasn’t Dove, then,” Ribbon said. “I’m sure she was trying to fight it just as hard as you were, Arriette.”

Nixe walked up to the Outsider. Just as she’d thought, it was an odona, one of the humanoid Outsiders with the caterpillar-esque dream-eater upon their head. Neither the odona herself nor the dream-eater moved. The odona’s eyes were closed, but the pinkish skin was familiar to Nixe. So was the green hair, visible in tufts protruding from beneath the front of the giant bug still clamped to her.

It couldn’t be, Nixe told herself—but how many odonae were in Garden City? With green hair? Nixe tried to glimpse into what remained of the Outsider’s spirit, to see the darkness that had led to her awakening, to see anything to confirm or deny that she was the one who’d invited to that cute café, just out of hope that maybe she could convince one single person to be kinder and more accepting to others…

She shuddered. Only the heroines’ presence behind her kept Nixe from tearing up. She had to leave. She didn’t want to be here, with them, with the one before her on the street, with everyone who’d been a victim of the fear and panic the Luminon wished for them to suffer.

As she tried to walk away from the intersection, hoping to slip away without notice, Ribbon called out, “Dove!”

Her body froze, reminding her of how the odona Without’s silk had immobilized her. But this time, she could force herself to face them in response. She walked back towards Ribbon and the others, her eyes lowering to the ground between them.

“Dove,” Ribbon said, “I want us all to have a talk. A discussion. To welcome you into the fold.” Nimbus turned her body away from the others. “To make sure we’re all on the same level.” Looking to her companions, Ribbon said, “Will everyone be able to meet after school? Or tonight?”

“I’ve got practice today,” Bounce replied.

“And I’m working tonight,” Machina said. “Sorry.”

Turning to the almiran, Ribbon asked, “Arriette?

“I.” She paused bluntly after that word. “It is best if I do not attract suspicion after helping you all. For whatever help I was.”

Nixe wasn’t sure if her reasoning was an excuse or not. Still, Arriete had been more of a help to them than her, deserved their friendship more than Nixe…

Looking in her other direction, Ribbon said, “Nimbus, can you join us?”

Nimbus’s response was swift, sharp, like the flash of lightning before the boom of thunder. “No.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah, I’m sure.” Walking away from the group, she said, “Come on, we’ve got to get to class.”

Shrugging, Bounce said, “She’s right.”

Ribbon nodded slowly in response, before turning back to Nixe. “Let’s go, Dove.”

Nixe couldn’t even look at Ribbon. How could Elvie look at her, even pretend she wanted her around? A reminder of everything that’d happened, of what’d nearly happened to her brother? Nimbus’s tone made it obvious enough, but the others…were they just coming up with excuses?

Stepping away, Nixe said, “N-no…no. I’ll be…”

She didn’t know what to answer, because she truly didn’t know where she was going or what she was going to do. All she could do was turn and run, dashing through the stopped traffic, wishing that none of them were following her.

Nixe ducked into a back alley, placing a hand to her chest. She didn’t bid the bird back to its cage, not yet. Maybe it was best to simply hide away, find a place to perch away. She wouldn’t get hungry or sleepy in this form, tired or cold—

“Dove.”

She jerked up, nearly slipping in the snow. “I’m sorry for startling you,” Ribbon’s voice came from behind, drawing nearer. “I just want to talk.”

Refusing to face her, Nixe said, “You should get to school.”

“What about you?”

“I’m fine.” What kind of stories had spread at school in her absence? Would people have put the pieces together? Or was she truly unimportant to anyone, so invisible that none of the students would have noticed her missing?

And if she returned to school, someone there might have known she’d run away from home. The staff might contact her mother about it, or just contact her regardless. Going home…just wasn’t an option.

A single footstep echoed in the alleyway. “Dove, where are you going to go?”

Nixe shook her head. “Please don’t worry about it, Ribbon.” She beckoned the bird back into its cage, transforming back into her normal self. Her stomach grumbled as her feet touched down and started out of the alleyway. Ribbon didn’t follow her as Nixe emerged into the brisk wind that blew between the streets, bringing a shiver through her body.

To think she’d once dreamed of running away from home…


	21. Hesitation

Nixe had always dreamed of camping beneath the stars when she was younger; she still remembered her envy towards her classmates who’d talked about their summer vacations away from Garden City. How their parents pointed out constellations to them, how they sat by campfires and munched on gooey marshmallows. That had been before Nixe had realized a cheery family outing wasn’t something her own family was capable of.

She wished such memories didn’t flash back into her mind at a time like now. Though she laid beneath the night sky, the light shining from nearby buildings drowned out the stars, leaving a dull sky that wouldn’t match the darkness of the country sky.

The snow beneath her body didn’t bite into her skin as it would her normal self. It wasn’t the most comfortable cushion, and yet she’d managed to drift off into slumber for a short while. Maybe Mrs. Brice could have made arrangements for her, but the last thing she wanted was to return to the judging stares at the Embassy.

How close was it to dawn? When she’d be able to stroll the streets without arousing suspicion as a teenage girl wandering around at midnight during the tail-end of winter—or as the “heroine” who’d betrayed humankind?

And when daylight came, what would she do then? Wait for another Without to awaken, or another portal to open? Would she be just as “helpful” as she’d been yesterday? She’d thought she was strong, skilled, powerful…but all of that had been the Luminon’s gift.

The Luminon…what were they plotting now? Would they try to take Elvie’s brother again? Or anyone else in her family? Would they target the other heroines’ loved ones?

Or maybe even Nixe’s family?

Nixe sprang up in the snow. The Luminon’s last question to her echoed in Nixe’s mind. Would the Luminon carry through with that threat to take her mother? To punish Nixe for her defiance? What if, one day, she sensed the portal opening in the direction of her neighbourhood—but was too far away to save her?

She stood, gazing around her. Which direction _was_ home, anyway? At first, Nixe walked towards the side of the building, but she stopped herself. The image flashed in her mind of herself at the very edge, where people could see her—where she could see how far away the ground below was—

Shaking her head, Nixe walked back to the ladder she’d climbed to reach the roof. It was only a five-storey building, and she’d probably be able to stick the landing. Still, the thought of the drop brought uncomfortable feelings to Nixe’s stomach…and would just end up causing a scene if anyone spotted her.

The last thing Garden City needed was for her to cause any more panic.

= ~ = ~ = ~ = ~ =

The first hint of sunlight peeked over the horizon as Nixe walked down the familiar streets, the neighbourhood she’d once called home. Her sweater’s hood remained over her head, to minimize the risk of anyone recognizing her.

Just as she stepped onto Talbot Drive, a faint sensation washed over her. One she couldn’t quite explain, but something she recognized immediately.

Brilliant light erupted down the street ahead of her, as if the sun had pierced through the buildings in its way. But rather than the golden light of the sun, this was a pure-white, washing out all around it.

Nixe’s stomach twisted as she started running. As she drew nearer, her hand rose to her chest, ready to bid the bird from its cage.

Before she could, the cloud of light began to contract, shrinking until it winked out of existence in a burst of sparkles. It left no mark behind, other than an empty street…and a car that coasted into a streetlamp with a sharp thud, its windscreen shattering over a driver-less seat.

Nixe stood still, her head spinning with a flood of thoughts. It wouldn’t have been her mom—she didn’t drive. It wasn’t her dad’s car. But it was still someone’s child, perhaps someone’s parent or someone’s love, taken away from them. They would return, of course…only to become a monster that would hurt other innocent people, hurt their parents or children or lover.

What if, that day she’d betrayed the heroines…she hadn’t made that choice? Would it be over by now? Could they have stopped the Luminon, if not for Nixe’s interference?

Was every person the Luminon took now her fault?

“Nixe!”

Her head jerked up. That voice only spiked the panic in her core, and without even thinking about it, she started running. Her foot slipped on some slush, bringing her crashing to the sidewalk and smacking her knee hard against the pavement.

Before she could stand, the familiar figure in yellow and lavender ran over to her. “Are you alright?” Ribbon said, kneeling by her.

Nixe tried to push herself up, without looking to Ribbon. Shutting her eyes tight, she said, “Go away…please…”

A hand took her shoulder. “Nixe, it’s not your fault—”

Nixe pushed the hand away and started running again. She made it about a block before her body couldn’t keep going, until she had to grab the pole of a sign to not fall over again. Her head still swam as she straightened herself up. How long had it been since she’d gotten a good night’s sleep as her normal self? Or anything decent to eat?

She looked behind her, hoping that Ribbon wasn’t still there. The heroine had vanished—if she’d answered the portal’s echo so quickly, her own home must have been nearby. Nixe glanced up to the street signs, realizing that the block ahead was where her house would be.

Maybe the Luminon had already taken her mother, long ago.

Maybe her mother knew, on some level, and never wanted to see Nixe again.

As her head lowered, Nixe’s stomach churned painfully. She couldn’t recall ever being this hungry. Even on her mother’s worst nights, there’d always been a warm meal, whether her mom or Nixe herself had made it. There’d always been a comfortable bed.

She wanted to cry, and yet, as if she knew this was exactly what she deserved, no tears came.

Nixe pulled her backpack off of her shoulders. There was no food left inside, and only a bit less than two dollars in change. It’d have to do, she decided, and she trudged off down the street to her left, not thinking of where it might lead her.

= ~ = ~ = ~ = ~ =

It was the local Freshmart that Nixe soon arrived at. The supermarket her mother often sent her to, given that she was rarely in the mood or shape to go shopping herself...

As she browsed the aisles, the thought of someone recognizing Nixe crossed her mind. Would they know she’d run away from home, or wonder what a teenager was doing shopping so early?

Though Nixe knew she’d regret it, she spotted a box of cheap chocolate-chip cookies on sale, and figured it’d be filling enough. As worried as she was approaching the cashier, he only gave her a coy little smile—he probably figured she was just buying herself some junk food before heading off to school. Nixe forced a smile in turn, uttering a quick thank-you before hurrying out.

A long yellow bus drove down the street as she approached the sidewalk. Probably the same one that would have taken her to Amaryllis High. The thought of home crossed her mind again…and the thought of checking on her mom.

She closed her eyes tight for a moment, then stuffed the cookies into her backpack and headed away from the route she would have taken home from the store. Maybe her mom was terrified, or maybe even worse, yet Nixe couldn’t bear the thought of returning home, after everything.

She really was a terrible person.

Nixe transformed to climb onto the rooftop of Eden High, then cleared away a patch of snow by a warm part of the ventilation systems before changing back. A wave of dizziness washed over her as she touched back down onto the rooftop, almost causing her to tumble over.

Her little picnic of one proved unsatisfying. Half the box of cookies probably wouldn’t keep her full for long, but after a while, she just didn’t want to keep eating cookies. Sitting still had started to weigh upon her eyelids, and so she transformed back into her magical form.

How long could she keep going on like this? Until she was too tired and hungry to keep going as her normal self? Would she need to start begging? Or finally run on home with her tail between her legs, her wings surely to be clipped.

Nixe hopped down from the rooftop, then transformed back into her normal self. As soon as the cold swept over her, she longed for shelter. Her first thought was the library…she’d never seen the staff bother anyone who’d dozed off in the armchairs. Maybe she could catch a few winks there too.

As she neared the sidewalk, she glanced back to Eden High. It’d all started here…and Nixe would have given anything for it to have never happened. For the first Without to never awaken, for the Luminon to never set eyes upon Garden City. For herself to have never discovered magic, or to have used it to further the Luminon’s ambitions. To be back in Eden High, its familiar classrooms and halls, just trying to blend into the background.

…she missed school.

She missed home.

Sighing, Nixe continued on her way.

= ~ = ~ = ~ = ~ =

The two librarians behind the counter greeted Nixe with smiles and waves. The woman said, “Oh, hello. I don’t think I’ve seen you in here in a while, hm?”

Nixe nodded, but continued along without a word. Browsing the shelves, Nixe found the first book of the _Lunal Knight_ series. Her favourite, back when fantasy had been mere fantasy. All she wanted now, what she needed, was an escape…

She started for her favourite chair—nearly walking into the library assistant as she walked around the corner. “Oh, sorry!” the assistant said, stepping back just in time.

“It’s…it’s my fault,” Nixe replied, shaking her head. “I’m…I’m sorry…”

Nixe glanced to the girl. She looked like a teenager, with her white long-sleeved blouse tucked neatly into her jeans. An unsettling thought crossed Nixe’s mind, but she dismissed it—was she going to assume any teenager was one of the heroines?

The assistant gave a smile before straightening the stack of books she carried. “Excuse me,” she said before hurrying past Nixe.

Nixe watched the assistant speak with the folks at the desk for a second before heading towards her favourite chair—which was already occupied. She settled for another one against the wall, setting her backpack next to it and opening up _Lunal Knight_. She’d read the story countless times…a world where what was believed to be a second moon turned out to be the distant cocoon of an ancient moth goddess intent on wiping out humankind and “reweaving” the world.

Which, Nixe recalled with a pang in her stomach, Ulrene had chosen to oppose without hesitation.

= ~ = ~ = ~ = ~ =

Nixe hadn’t even made it halfway through the book by the time it was dark outside. Maybe she had nodded off here and there; there’d been periods where it’d taken her a while to imagine each scene, to paint it so vividly that not a crack existed that anything else could slip through.

It was when the earth-eaters first appeared that Nixe had to close the book. The gigantic larvae of the moth goddess, laid upon the world to consume all in their path…including Ulrene’s hometown… As hard as she tried to picture them like massive worms tunnelling through the ground, as she always had, instead she saw giant caterpillars reminiscent of the one atop the head of the odona she’d met. And the one who’d been turned into a Without. It’d brought back the memory of having her body controlled by the Without, being forced to attack Ribbon…

She’d ended up skipping a few pages ahead, trying to immerse herself in the story again. The hours dragged on by, but she managed to shut out the rest of the world…

…until the world nudged its way in via a soft female voice. “Excuse me, Nixe?”

The mention of her name nearly made her jump out of her seat. Only by gripping the armrests did Nixe remain still, though _Lunal Knight_ tumbled from her lap, her page lost. “Sorry,” said the assistant, kneeling down to pick up the book. “Just letting you know that we’re closing in fifteen minutes.”

Staring at the girl’s eyes, a blend of brown and blue in her irises, Nixe said in a low voice, “How do you know my name?”

“One of the librarians mentioned your name,” the assistant replied. Her hands came together. “And…” Her voice dropped as well. “…I suppose you can say we have a friend in common.”

Only one person came to Nixe’s mind. She would have bolted from her seat, had the assistant not been standing directly in front of her. “What do you want?” Nixe whispered.

“I’m sorry to be a bother,” the girl replied, sitting down on the floor by Nixe’s chair. “My name’s Miranda, by the way—Miri for short. Anyway, Elvie and Faye wanted to make sure we had a way to get in touch with you. Do you have a phone?”

Nixe shook her head. “Only a tablet…” The last thing she wanted was to let the other heroines have a way to contact her—what else would they ask about other than why she’d betrayed them and humankind?

“That’ll do. Can I see it? I’ll install the app we’ve been using.”

Though Nixe still wanted to just leave, she reached into her backpack and handed her tablet over to Miri. The girl tapped on the screen. “Faye’s assured us that the channel she set up for us on this app is completely secure. It’s just the five of us, plus her.”

Nixe nodded, without a hint of spirit.

About a minute later, Miri said, “There. It shouldn’t take long to download. Just keep an eye on it, in case something comes up and we need to get in touch.”

That was the least she could do, whatever they needed her for. “T-thanks,” Nixe said, as Miri handed her back her tablet. The girl didn’t rise to her feet yet. “Is…is there anything else you want?”

Miri nodded. “Elvie wanted me to ask you something. If you’d be willing to see her on Friday, after school.”

Such a thought sent Nixe’s stomach into free-fall. Even after Nixe had shot her down these previous few times, had refused to talk, had run away from her…

“And…” Miri’s eyes shifted away from Nixe. “…maybe on Saturday, you could come over to my place. We could chat for a bit, watch stuff…”

The other girl’s tone sounded as uneasy as Nixe’s. “Why?” said Nixe. “Did Elvie ask you to invite me over?”

Miri still didn’t look at her. “Yeah. She wants us to give you a chance, to try to be friendly with you.” She rose to her feet. “I-if that’s fine with you, just…let me know through that app, okay?”

Nixe couldn’t look at Miri either now. The library assistant walked away, and Nixe picked up _Lunal Knight_ from the floor. There wasn’t any point in reading further, not that Nixe really wanted to. She put her tablet away, then left the novel on the trolley that Miri was putting books away from. Not a word left either of them as Nixe walked on by, headed for the exit.

Brisk air enveloped Nixe as she stepped out into the night. At least transforming would bring her respite from the cold, though it wouldn’t change the feeling of being utterly alone.

If anything, that Elvie and Miri were trying to reach out to her like this made her feel all the more lonely. They didn’t actually want to be her friend, did they? It was just about trying to work together, trying to fix what Nixe herself was in part responsible for.

Neither of them could possibly want her friendship in the slightest. And when this was all over, neither of them would want to see her again.

Not a tear left Nixe’s eyes as she wandered off into the night.


	22. Teammates

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Apologies for the wait for this chapter.

Nixe woke from another nap beneath the open sky, this time atop Eden High. As she rolled over in the snow, her arm brushed against something rigid—something stuck into the snow. An envelope, wrapped in plastic.

She sprang up, looking around her. There were no footprints of any sort around her, not even from a bird. No ordinary person could have gotten up here and left that there without disturbing her or the snow.

It must have been an Outsider.

Paranoia set in, yet so did a realization that settled that initial panic, even if it wasn’t that comforting a thought. There had probably been Outsider eyes upon her ever since she’d left the Embassy, making sure she wasn’t working for the Luminon.

So what was this message about?

Nixe tore off the plastic, then opened the envelope. Inside was…money. Her eyes widened at the number of bills within—there must have been hundreds of dollars inside!

As she tried to count them, she noticed a piece of paper inside with them. Nixe pulled it out, and read the short letter:

_We’ve been supporting the heroines fighting the Luminon for their hard work and personal sacrifices. Now that you’ve joined them, I wanted to ensure that you were provided for as well._

_Please take care of yourself. - Faye_

Unease flooded Nixe’s stomach as she returned the letter to the envelope. She couldn’t accept this. Not after all of the pain she’d caused, not like she was one of the heroines actually protecting Garden City…

…but she couldn’t just return it, either. There was no one around to hand it back to. She’d have to get herself something to eat sooner or later.

Nixe hopped down from Eden High’s rooftop. She wasn’t sure what happened with everything she was wearing and carrying when she transformed, but she didn’t want to have the money disappear on her when she changed back to normal. She set it down in the snow before returning the bird to its cage. Her body almost tumbled over as she landed, exhaustion quickly setting in upon her. 

She put the envelope into her bag, just as her stomach pained enough to prompt a hand to her tummy. Today didn’t feel too cold, but Nixe barely noticed over her hunger.

= ~ = ~ = ~ = ~ =

A breakfast sandwich from the nearby Fireside sated that need; a coffee, something she’d never cared for before, made her feel just a little bit more awake. Perhaps that was merely a placebo effect, though.

The fear of being recognized, if only for a high-school student skipping class, drove Nixe to leave as soon as she was finished. To think that she was free to go wherever she wanted, yet none of the ideas that crossed her mind felt like a welcome escape.

…escape.

The memory of that odona Without flashed back into her mind—and so did the odona who’d invited her to the Café a la Crème. She’d worried that they might have been one and the same. That possibility now flared in her mind…she had to know for certain.

Nixe headed for the nearest bus station, dread welling where hunger had once resided.

= ~ = ~ = ~ = ~ =

The other two times Nixe had encountered that Outsider—Anise was her name?—it had been right after school. If she was going to find her, that time was her best bet.

She’d needed to stay out of the public eye, and the bus she’d taken downtown had passed by the Museum of Nature, so she found her way back to the Roman-flaired building. Though there was still a room full of bird information, it was a far cry from the full-fledged feature from the day her class had visited as a field trip. She’d been able to take in everything, with innocent awe, having forgotten what awaited her at the end of the bus ride back home.

Now, even as she stared at models of birds, all she could think about was what she’d done. Whom she might have hurt.

Nixe wandered the Museum until fifteen minutes before the end of classes. Only one attendant asked her about school; Nixe claimed it was a holiday, and the attendant seemed to accept that answer.

By the time she approached Amaryllis High, school buses were lined up in the driveway at the front doors, but no one had started boarding yet. She might have been a little early, but hopefully that didn’t matter.

She crossed the streets, and walked into the Café a la Crème. A few folks were inside, but no Outsiders. As she approached the counter, a pretty woman in a frilly dress greeted Nixe with a smile. “Good afternoon! What can I get for you today?”

Though the treats in the glass display case certainly were delectable-looking, Nixe couldn’t shake the real reason she was here from her mind. “By any chance,” Nixe asked, “has an odona woman been in here recently?” The waitress raised an eyebrow. “She looks like she has a big caterpillar on her head…”

The woman nodded. “Oh, her! No, she hasn’t been in for a few days now. At least not when I’ve been working.”

Nixe felt like her heart fell from her chest, straight through the floor. “…I see.” She tried her best not to let it show.

Another waitress ducked behind the first to fetch some tarts from the display case. The first woman glanced around to the other customers present, then spoke in a low voice. “To be honest…she seemed like a nice person, but I think she scared away a bunch of our regulars. I don’t blame them—that thing on her head is damn creepy.”

The other waitress, who had just slipped behind the first with two plates, paused. “Come on,” she said to her co-worker. “Anise is a regular of ours too. She’s just as welcome here as any human.”

The first waitress did lower her eyes for a second before looking back to Nixe. “Anyway, can I get you anything?”

Nixe nodded automatically, then had to decide on something to actually order. The chocolate macarons had been nice, but she didn’t want to be reminded of Anise. “The cinnamon tart, please.”

Once Nixe had paid for her tart, she took a seat near the corner of the café. For all she knew, there could be any number of reasons why Anise hadn’t been around. Maybe she was just busy, or had even returned to her world for some reason.

Or maybe the Luminon had taken her, and she was that Without. Maybe Nixe herself had fought off the heroines to let one of those clouds of light steal her away.

As Nixe’s stare lingered on her fork rather than her treat, the door opened and several teenage girls entered, clad in winter clothing and toting school-bags. They took up several tables uncomfortably close to Nixe, chatting among themselves as they sat. Nixe overheard the mention of “practice”—they must have been one of Amaryllis High’s sports teams.

Nixe contemplated taking her tart to go, just leaving without a word. But she overheard one sentence from one of the girls. “Just two more games ‘til the city dodgeball finals. How about we try not to get knocked out in the first round this year, girls?”

“Maybe if you don’t fumble like in practice, Chandra,” one of the other girls replied, “we might stand a chance.”

“Hey, to be fair,” replied the girl named Chandra, “I did send that ball I tripped over back to my own side!”

So they were the Amaryllis High dodgeball team. Nixe’s eyes fixed upon that girl, Chandra. Her black hair was tied into a ponytail—much like Bounce’s was, though the heroine’s hair was a dark crimson. Just like that moment in the stairwell with Elvie, Nixe could see the resemblance now—she could picture Bounce sitting before her now, in Chandra’s seat.

Ignoring her tart, Nixe rose from her seat, forcing herself not to rush for the door but to leave in a calm and innocent manner.

As soon as the door closed behind her, what washed over her wasn’t the cool breeze of a late winter day—but the wave of energy released from one of the Luminon’s portals opening.

The need to be inconspicuous had long passed. Nixe bolted into the nearest alleyway, ducking behind a corner. Without checking for on-lookers, she released the bird from its cage, then sprinted into the street in the direction she’d sensed that energy from.

As she rounded a corner, Nixe spotted the cloud of light in the center of an intersection, enveloping several stopped cars. Had their inhabitants already been taken? Nixe summoned her sword, focusing her magic into its blade. How had the other heroines stopped these portals before? Just by attacking them? She swung her sword, the flash of light striking the growing cloud with a burst of feathers. The white void contracted just a little, but regained its size and more before Nixe could swing again.

She slashed out, faster and faster, yet the white cloud seemed to spread out more than she could fight it down. Nixe didn’t know how close it was to taking anyone else away—all she could do was unleash swing after swing, to little avail. Was throwing herself into the cloud an option? Could she destroy it more easily from within? Or would that risk becoming the Luminon’s prisoner, and not being let go of this time?

As Nixe took her sword in both hands, as if she could strike harder with that grip, a crimson bolt flew into the cloud from beneath Nixe, sending a reddish flash through the white and shrinking it down. Some instinct imagined that said shot had been meant for _her_ , but had missed somehow, even though she knew—

“Dove!” came a familiar voice from behind her. “Don’t let up the pressure! Keep attacking!”

Nixe glanced over her shoulder, just in time to see Bounce hurl another ether-wreathed dodgeball into the portal. She flinched, thinking of all the times that attack had been aimed at her—but now wasn’t the time, Nixe told herself. She turned back to the light, and began to send slash after slash of light into the cloud. With Bounce’s help, it wasn’t expanding any further, but their progress in banishing it was far from quick.

After what felt like an eternity, the cloud started to give way faster beneath their attacks. Was the Luminon abandoning this portal? Or…

Once the cloud had grown smaller, Nixe paused for a moment, gathering her energy into her weapon. The blade shone with a flowing brilliance, almost like a cascading waterfall of light. With a shout, Nixe took the grip in both hands, lunging forward and slashing. The ethereal light spread out from her sword, forming a blade of white energy that cleaved through what remained of the cloud. A gap formed between the two halves of the cloud, before those segments burst into glimmer and sparkles that soon dissipated into the air.

Nixe landed, taking deep breaths for a few moments. When she remembered her suspicion, she lifted her head, to see that another heroine had indeed been attacking from the opposite side. A figure that, with one swift motion, closed her outspread umbrella.

It was Nimbus.

“Right,” Bounce said, approaching from behind. “That settles that. Great work, everyone.”

Nixe didn’t break her gaze from Nimbus. Just as Nimbus didn’t draw her glare, her obvious fury even beneath the mask, away from Nixe.

“Nothing else, then?” Bounce said. “Time for us to head on our separate ways, then?”

“Yep,” Nimbus replied, turning her back to Nixe.

As she started away, Bounce called, “Come on, Nimbus. If it wasn’t for Dove, that portal might have taken someone away.”

Nimbus paused for a moment, but continued walking. “You don’t need to…” Nixe said in a low voice, unable to turn to Bounce.

Bounce stepped forward, calling out to Nimbus. “Not going to make a good impression with our new teammate?”

Nimbus finally spoke. “Shut up, Bounce!”

Without waiting for another word, Nimbus ran off, disappearing into a nearby alleyway. Bounce stared for a while longer before shaking her head. “That didn’t go well.”

Nixe’s head drooped. “You don’t need to try…”

“It’s alright,” Bounce replied. “Say, how ‘bout we grab ourselves a coffee? Already told the girls at the Café that I needed to get home, but we could slip into the Fireside for a chat.”

Nixe wanted to run away, just as Nimbus had, leaving Bounce in the dust. But she remembered what Miri had said, about how Elvie wanted them all to welcome Nixe into the group. Just trying to respect such an effort was the least she could do, for Elvie’s sake.

Shrugging, Nixe replied, “Okay, but I’m not much of a coffee-drinker.”

“Hot chocolate, then?”

= ~ = ~ = ~ = ~ =

On the way to the nearest Fireside, Nixe wondered if anyone else from Amaryllis High would see them, and what they might think of the two of them together. Was Chandra a popular girl, and would her hanging out with Nixe make people suspicious? Her faux-fur-lined parka and slender black jeans certainly looked more stylish than Nixe’s coat. She was certainly the swan out of the two of them…

Like most of the Firesides Nixe knew of, the one Chandra’s phone directed them to was a cozy brick building nestled among the taller buildings typical of downtown Garden City. Though a long line had formed in the drive-through, the line at the counter was quite short.

Once the two had ordered their drinks, Chandra led the way to a table in the corner. “The donuts here are good, but they don’t hold a candle to the Café a la Crème. The girls and I on the dodgeball team always stop in for a treat before a big match. It’s good mojo, or so I tell myself.”

Nixe had to ask one question. “When…when you walked in, did you…recognize _me_?”

Chandra shook her head. “Actually, I didn’t even notice you when I walked in. It was only after the portal opened, and I saw you run off outside, that I realized that you must have been our number-five.”

Though Chandra’s voice wasn’t that loud, and no one was sitting near them, Nixe’s stomach still pinched over the thought of discussing these things openly in a public place. “Wouldn’t you rather be hanging out with your friends? Your teammates?”

“I already told them I was going home. And besides…” Chandra pointed between the two of them.

Nixe’s voice dropped to a murmur. “I’m not your friend.”

“We’re teammates.”

“That doesn’t mean you want to get to know me. To be around me.”

Chandra’s smile vanished, though she didn’t respond.

“Miri already told me,” Nixe said, her voice still quiet. “That Elvie wants you all to be nice to me.”

Shrugging, Chandra said, “I mean, it only makes sense. You’re on our team. We’re not going to treat you like you’re dirt.”

Why _wouldn’t_ they? It wasn’t as if the authorities had any intention of forgetting all she’d done, even if she was helping the heroines now.

After a few seconds of awkward silence, Chandra said, “Look, Nixe. I’ll be honest, I never figured Elvie would get through to you, especially after I found out…y’know…” Nixe lowered her head further. “It’s still weird thinking of you being on our side, but Elvie’s right—you’re part of the team and I’m sure going to treat you like it.”

Forcing her gaze back to Chandra, Nixe said, “You don’t have to. I know what I’ve done.”

As she closed her eyes, Chandra said, “Not much of a people-person, are you?”

Nixe didn’t respond.

“I’ll…take that as a yes, then.” There was a brief silence—was that Chandra thinking about what to say, or just taking a drink? “You know, back in my first year of dodgeball at Amaryllis High, I royally messed up in our first match in the finals. It cost our team our shot, and I was sure I’d never live it down. I’d thought I’d made friends for once, and they’d never forgive me…but they laughed it off, assured me there was always next year.”

Was that meant to be anything like stealing people’s souls and turning them into monsters? “That’s completely different…”

Nixe didn’t open her eyes to see what this brief pause was about. “Maybe, yeah. But still, you’re in our corner now. We’ve got to work together, and that’s what matters now.”

Finally looking to Chandra, Nixe gave her head a slight shake. “I don’t think Nimbus wants to work together with me. I don’t blame her.”

“Parker, huh…”

“Parker?” Hadn’t a girl named Parker been in one of her classes last semester?

Chandra leaned in closer, her voice becoming even softer. “Um, Nixe…if I let you know something, will you promise not to tell the others I mentioned it to you? _Especially_ Parker?”

She dreaded what awaited, but figured it was best to understand. “I promise.”

“Parker, you see…” Chandra glanced over her shoulder before continuing. “Her mom’s a cop, and during one of the Without attacks, she was trying to keep people away while we fought it.”

A possibility rose from the black hole that Nice’s stomach had become. The Luminon had said they kept the Withouts from causing too much damage—but could one have—

“Then one of the Luminon’s portals opened up. The officers tried to help someone to safety, but…then I heard Nimbus screaming, and saw the portal closing…”

Nixe felt as if _she_ was like one of the portals—shrinking away. “The Luminon took her mom,” she spoke, in a barely-audible tone.

In an instant, the panic Nixe had felt when the Luminon had brought up Nixe’s own mother washed over her again. What if she’d seen her mom disappearing into one of those clouds of light, watching it vanish, unable to save her parent?

She wanted nothing more now than to wink out of existence, just like the Luminon’s portals.

Nixe pushed herself out of her seat. “Nixe?” Chandra said aloud. Her hip struck the table as she squeezed herself away from the chair, splashing hot-chocolate on herself.

Bolting for the door, Nixe ran out of the Fireside, sprinting down the sidewalk until her lungs were burning and her legs ached. Surely people were staring—she forced herself into the nearest alleyway, away from watching eyes.

Only once she was around a corner did she collapse behind a dumpster. Ragged noises left her throat, and steady streams soon chilled her cheeks. She racked her mind, trying to recall if she’d witnessed that portal, heard that scream from Nimbus as her mother was taken away. Had it simply been so routine for her that she’d hadn’t noticed?

It was no wonder that Parker didn’t want anything to do with Nixe. All she could ask herself was how any of them would have wanted her assistance, let alone friendship, after all she’d helped the Luminon bring about.


	23. Sympathy

The conflicting emotions twisted around in Nixe’s stomach. Standing outside of Amaryllis High was enough of a risk—what if any of her teachers spotted her, recognized her?

She’d passed the days until Friday hiding away from people, staying in her magical form to keep hunger and exhaustion at bay. Even now, her head was dizzy from lack of sleep, the cold in the air not helping her drowsiness.

It still felt unbelievable that Elvie wanted to meet with her. Nixe had even checked her tablet that morning, hoping to find a message from Elvie telling her that she’d changed her mind, that she couldn’t meet Nixe today. Instead, it’d been Elvie asking if Nixe would meet her outside of Amaryllis High after classes. As much as Nixe wanted to ignore it, she’d given a simple answer: _Okay._

The faint sound of the last-period bell rang through the walls of the school. Nixe’s stomach tightened. She still had time to leave. To run away on Elvie, just as she’d done to Chandra. She didn’t deserve their friendship…yet the fact that they were willing to offer it…

A rumble of hunger passed through her gut, feeling almost like nausea. The first students were starting to leave, some heading for the buses outside and others taking to the sidewalk. Nixe stepped closer to the building, out of sight from the windows and doors. But did that make her only more conspicuous? She closed her eyes, trying to shut out the world, everyone around her, herself—

“Hey.”

Her voice came much sooner than Nixe expected. As if she’d hurried out to meet her. Nixe opened her eyes, turning her head to the right. Elvie’s pigtails poked out from beneath her earmuffs, along with the sky-blue ribbons keeping them in place. The smile she bore…wasn’t quite as sunny as the one Nixe remembered from that day, before Elvie realized who she was.

She was just as nervous as Nixe was.

“We’ll take the public bus home to my place. It’ll be a bit quicker. That’s okay with you?”

“Y-yeah,” Nixe said.

“Let’s go, then!” Her voice was still low, and the way her smile widened a touch seemed forced.

As Nixe stepped away from the wall with her, she glanced back towards Amaryllis High. Watching from the lane where the buses pulled in were two girls—Nixe recognized Chandra’s winter attire, but didn’t know the other girl. Was that Parker?

A rush of light-headed nervousness flooded Nixe, but she continued on with Elvie, even as she wished to be anywhere but next to her.

= ~ = ~ = ~ = ~ =

The two took seats next to each other on the bus. Nixe stared out the window at first, watching buildings and pedestrians go by. She spotted some winged figure among a crowd of people, but the bus was going too fast for her to make out their features.

After a while, she heard Elvie’s voice next to her. “I’ve always thought birds were so majestic. The way their wings fold in, how cute they look sitting perched—then they take flight, spreading their wings and soaring to the skies…”

For a moment, Nixe wondered why Elvie brought that up…then she remembered the obvious reason. She turned her head away from the window, but only to the back of the seat in front of her. What could she say? How could the two of them simply chat like they were friends?

She supposed the easiest route was the same one Elvie had taken. “You wear ribbons a lot, don’t you?”

“Mm-hmm,” Elvie replied. “They’re pretty, and they can add so much to an outfit!”

“So…I suppose you’re into fashion, then?” Nixe wasn’t; she had no idea what was trendy, or what sort of trends Elvie might have followed.

“I’ve always wanted to weary fancy dresses, pretty skirts, all kinds of cute outfits. But my dad doesn’t like spending tons of money on clothes, or buying ‘impractical’ outfits. So my mom suggested I give ribbons a try, and I’ve just come to love them.” Elvie shrugged, with a soft chuckle and an odd smile that was more genuine than the ones she’d shown thus far.

Nixe nodded, forcing a smile of her own before returning her gaze to the seat in front of her.

= ~ = ~ = ~ = ~ =

The two stepped off the bus on Monroe Lane, a road Nixe knew wasn’t too far from her own home. “You live around here, right Nixe?” Elvie asked as they walked down the sidewalk.

A lump formed in Nixe’s throat. She didn’t look to Elvie…until Elvie spoke again. “I-I’m sorry. You don’t need to tell me if you don’t want to…”

Nixe shook her head. “It’s fine. And yeah, I do live around here.”

Neither said a word until they approached a light-blue two-storey house. Everything about it and its yard seemed neat and tidy, the only exception being trails in the snow from the formation of a snowman who stood next to the shovelled pathway to the door. “This is my place,” Elvie said. “My dad’s still at work, but my mom should be home.”

Elvie opened the door, to a well-lit and bright interior so different from Nixe’s own home. After they took off their shoes and hung their coats, they passed through the living room, a room with wide-open windows letting light shine on the nice furniture and art on the walls. Nixe didn’t want to linger, and continued after Elvie towards the stairs.

From the kitchen called a voice. “Welcome home, Elvie! Your friend is here?”

“Yes, Mom!” Elvie answered, as her mother stepped out of the kitchen. She was a tall woman, wearing a red apron over her clothes and a red-and-white plaid beret over her hair. “This is Nixe.”

“Nice to meet you, Nixe,” Elvie’s mother said. “I’m just in the kitchen if you girls need me.”

“Alright, Mom!” Elvie nodded, and led the way upstairs. Nixe followed into a corridor lined with doors; just from her first glance, she knew the one on the left with a ribbon tied around the doorknob was Elvie’s.

The one before it opened as they approached, and a boy stepped out.

Nixe froze. Her entire body felt like lead. She tried her best to keep her face still, to not let the emotions that swelled within her show. The kid was younger than Elvie, he must have still been in elementary school. His short hair was darker than Elvie’s, and he was dressed in green-and-black plaid and jeans. His appearance wasn’t familiar—but of course, Nixe had barely seen him on that day, only sensed him through her magic. Sensed his fear, his terror.

The boy before her stopped, and had it not been for his calm expression, Nixe would have dreaded the thought of him recognizing her.

“Connor,” Elvie said, her voice its usual self somehow, “this is Nixe, one of my friends.”

“Hey, Nixe,” Connor said, before stepping past her and heading downstairs.

Elvie looked to Nixe, who still felt as if none of her body was animate. Taking Nixe gently by the wrist, Elvie led her towards her door. Nixe’s legs seemed to answer automatically, following her in.

The bedroom’s walls were a soft pink shade, with Elvie’s plush blankets a similar shade. A bookcase near the window was filled with novels and baubles, and a small wooden chest sat on the white desk next to the closet door, a desk with a large mirrored backboard. It wasn’t much bigger than Nixe’s own bedroom, but was so much fancier, so much more inviting. Maybe just because it _wasn’t_ Nixe’s own bedroom.

Elvie let go of Nixe’s hand, then closed the door. She sat down on the bed, looking to Nixe with a smile. That hint of unease was still, a reminder of what Nixe had done—what she had nearly done.

She managed to squeak out a sentence. “Is your brother…doing okay?”

With a nod, Elvie said, “He was scared about it at first, but now when he talks about it, it’s more about the heroines who saved him.”

Was he fine? Or merely hiding the lingering terror. “I’m so sorry, Elvie…”

Elvie rose from the bed, approaching Nixe before she spoke softly. “Did you know…what the Luminon wanted to do?”

“No,” Nixe replied. “I didn’t know they would do that…but…I t-told them who you were.”

Though Elvie’s smile vanished, she said, “It’s okay. The Luminon hasn’t gone after him again, or my parents.”

Some part of Nixe hoped that maybe the Luminon understood that what they had done was wrong. Even if Nixe’s opposition to it had driven the Luminon to banish her.

Thinking of that day she and Elvie had recognized each other prompted a curiosity of Nixe’s own. “Did you tell Faye who I was?”

Elvie tilted her head downward a touch. “N-no. I’d…I’d wanted to try to find you again, to reach out to you. After…after what happened, when Faye found out…they decided to act then, to…”

Nixe nodded, and Elvie’s voice trailed off. She closed her eyes, thinking of all she’d done even before the Luminon had set their eyes upon Elvie’s brother. “Why?”

“Why…what?”

“Why did you want to reach out to me?”

She heard Elvie step away from her.

“Why did you think I was worth trying to convince in the first place?”

No answer came for several seconds. When Nixe opened her eyes, Elvie seemed to have taken on Nixe’s mood—her head was lowered, her eyes gazing downward, her lips forming a frown.

As strange as it felt after the thought crossed her mind, Nixe wished she knew some way to comfort Elvie, whatever she was feeling. She stepped closer; that was all she could think of.

Elvie lifted her head. “You…you were at Eden High, right Nixe? You remember the Outsiders there?”

“Yeah. The ones who joined as students.”

“You remember Erys, of course.”

“Erys?” Was that the name of one of—

Of course. Nixe realized _who_ it had to be.

“The first time I saw her, I was…kind of awe-struck. I’d always wanted to talk to her, get to know her, but…I was too nervous about it. About making a fool of myself, or saying something impolite.”

At least Elvie had _wanted_ to make the Outsider students feel welcome, even if she was just too shy.

“Then…then it happened. When I ran into the gym, I saw her—I knew it was her, even if she’d transformed into some massive flowery form. I tried to run away, but she grabbed me, pulled me to her. She said she wasn’t going to let anyone leave her alone…”

Nixe bit her lip. The Withouts awoke when their darkest emotions were triggered. That Outsider, the vine-armed plant-girl, Erys…had she felt ignored by the humans around her? Ostracized? Like an outsider?

Elvie brought a hand to her face, a cross between a sort of thinker’s pose and how one would sob into their hand. “It’s funny…I just found myself wishing there was something I could do, that I was one of those magical heroines from all those years ago, that I could save Erys from what she’d become. Then it happened, and I transformed. I fought her, turned her back to normal. But that night, I couldn’t sleep. And for weeks, I just wondered…” A soft noise escaped Elvie, and her body shuddered. “…what if I _had_ talked to her? What if I _had_ welcomed her? What if even one person had made her feel like she wasn’t alone?”

Nixe had to interrupt now. “Elvie, it wasn’t your fault, it wasn’t anyone’s fault.” She put a hand on Elvie’s shoulder. “The Luminon’s magic would have turned her into a monster through some other emotion.”

Elvie gave a series of tiny nods. “I…I know that now, but that was what I thought then. I wished I’d been a better person then. After that, I tried my best to be kind to others, to make them feel welcome, to pick them up after they felt down.”

And that was what had led Elvie to give encouraging words to a girl who’d burst out one day in the lunch hall in support of Outsiders. “I see,” Nixe said.

Elvie looked to Nixe, her eyes twinkling with moisture. “That first day we met, Nixe, and when you turned against us…I didn’t know what to think. You’d seemed like a good person, but…I was so confused. N-Nixe…”

Her hand slipped around Nixe’s fingers.

“N-Nixe…can you please tell me why? Why did you join the Luminon?”

Nixe’s eyes widened.

“I’m not going to judge you now,” Elvie said. “I just want to…understand. Why, Nixe?”

Elvie had opened herself up to Nixe, had let her know such a personal pain. It wasn’t about trying to garner Nixe’s sympathy; it’d been an honest answer, meant to explain the truth to Nixe.

If Elvie knew why…

She wouldn’t condone what Nixe had done. Why she’d felt it was her only option. Why she’d believed it was worth hurting so many people for. But she’d _understand_ Nixe’s reasoning. She’d know why she’d done what she’d done.

And Elvie would sympathize with her. Nixe was certain of that. Even after all the pain and damage she’d caused, Elvie would still feel sympathy for Nixe, what had driven her to the Luminon’s side.

Nixe’s body shuddered, and she yanked her hand free of Elvie’s grip.

“Nixe?” Elvie gasped.

Shaking her head fiercely, Nixe said, “No…no! Elvie…”

She wanted to drag out that persona she’d faced Elvie and the other heroines with so many times before. The one that had answered their passion and spirit with coldness and hostility. The one that had slapped down Elvie’s hand every time it’d been offered. The one meant to forge a wall of ice between her and them.

All Nixe could muster now were pained squeaks, before her instinct took over and she bolted for the door.

“ _Nixe!_ ”

Elvie’s footsteps followed her downstairs. Nixe shoved her feet into her boots, threw on her coat, didn’t bother zipping up before rushing out into the cold—

Even with the myriad of emotions spinning in her head, Nixe still felt the release of energy emanating from not far away. The tell-tale aura of a Without awakening.

“Nixe!”

She turned to see Elvie behind her, panting. “Come on!”

Elvie took her hand at first, only letting it go once both of them were running towards the nearest path between houses. The fences were covered in snow, and few footprints laid in the white-covered pathway before Nixe and Elvie’s boots added more.

Elvie came to a stop, bringing both hands to her chest. As she brought them out, she twirled them in two circles before her before gliding them out to her sides—as if in the pattern of a bow. White light enveloped her body, lifting her feet off of the ground, and letting a similar energy to the one Nixe had sensed minutes ago brush lightly against Nixe’s body.

There was no time to watch, or wonder what the transformation looked like to an observer. Nixe released the bird from its cage, and when the light that covered her own body faded, she touched down into the snow as Dove, with Ribbon standing before her.

Neither said a word before they dashed off, towards the location of the Without.

Cries of terror filled the air as they neared its location, and one scream cut through the air as a hulking furred form flung someone down to the ground. Machina bounced against the pavement, her body tumbling towards Nixe and Elvie. “Machina!” Elvie cried, rushing towards her friend.

Nixe summoned her sword, facing down the monster. The beast might have passed for an abominable snowman, a goliath covered in shaggy whitish hair and bearing long jagged claws. A maw opened from within the fur upon its head, letting out a howl and a freezing gale towards the heroines.

Nixe thrust her sword out, unleashing a tornado to deflect the monster’s cold air. The force of her own winds even nudged the monster back, giving Elvie time to help Machina back to her feet. Once it recovered, the beast flung itself onto all fours, bolting at Nixe.

Before Nixe could react, Machina grabbed hold of her wrist, yanking Nixe away from the monster’s charge. She tumbled along the street, pushing herself up as the monster themselves tripped and smashed upon the concrete. Elvie had caught one of its ankles with her ribbon baton.

Nixe focused her energy into her sword. She wanted to finish this quickly, before the monster could cause too much damage. With a shout, Nixe swung out her blade as the beast tried to stand, unleashing a pulse of light from her sword that blasted the monster onto its side.

Machina jumped high into the air, propelled by the boosters in her heels. Her palm-blaster shone with the brilliance of the sun before a massive verdant beam fired from her hand, enveloping the beast’s form yet leaving its surrounding unscarred.

When the beam faded, Machina landed next to Nixe. The monster’s form began to fade away, and once the last of the light had vanished, what laid in the street was a human man in a thick parka, the fur-lined hood drawn up around his face. Another human victim of the Luminon…

Nixe lowered her head. A strange silence fell over the street, without even the sounds of traffic to distract Nixe from her thoughts, from those around her. It was all too likely that, if it hadn’t been for Nixe, Elvie and Miri might have saved this man from his fate.

“Dove…”

Elvie’s voice snapped Nixe from her thoughts. Forcing herself to look to her fellow heroine, Nixe said, “El—Ribbon, I…”

Shaking her head, Elvie said, “No, I shouldn’t have pried. I’m sorry. I’ll tell my mom we had a bit of a spat, but we made up. I’m…I’m sorry for bringing that up.”

Nixe tried to find anything to say.

“Just,” Elvie said, stepping closer and lifting her head, “try to have a good time tomorrow, okay? Machina’s a good friend…I hope you two have fun together.”

Nixe glanced to Miri, who seemed confused behind her smile. Nodding, Nixe said, “I’ll…I’ll be going now…”

She didn’t dash off as she usually did, but simply walked away. Even with the energy that coursed through her body in this form, Nixe just felt too tired to run.


	24. Guilt

Elvie’s parting words lingered in Nixe’s mind, from the moment she woke up before sunrise on Saturday to the minute she descended from Eden High’s rooftop.

As she ate breakfast at the local Fireside, Nixe stared at her tablet. The chat app Miri had installed had a common chatroom, which Nixe didn’t even peek into. There were also two private messages: one was from Elvie, and Nixe couldn’t bring herself to check it. The second was from Miri. _My address is 602 Foster Road. Come around ten; my parents will be leaving before then._

It’d been years since anyone had invited Nixe over to their home, and certainly not under these circumstances. As much as Nixe wanted to decline, Elvie’s request for her to visit Miri weighed upon Nixe’s mind. It was the least Nixe could do, especially after how Elvie had opened herself up.

She remained at the Fireside until a little before ten, then dragged herself out. The coffee today had done little to relieve her exhaustion, but she mustered on, checking her tablet for directions every now and then.

Soon, she was before Miri’s home, a large white house in a fancier suburban neighbourhood. Anxiety crept into Nixe’s stomach, thinking of the envy she’d felt in Elvie’s home. Would today turn out just like yesterday, just like her meeting with Chandra? Did Miri know how both of those had turned out?

And just what did Miri think of her, after all Nixe had done?

Just as she considered leaving, the front door opened. Nixe froze still.

What emerged from the house wasn’t Miri, but a big floofy sheepdog—followed by Miri, clad in a woollen sweater and jeans, along with a floofy toque.

The dog spotted Nixe first, and began barking. Miri smiled—Nixe couldn’t tell if it was a forced expression from her distance. Still, Miri had seen her…she couldn’t just leave now.

“Easy, Corley!” Miri said to the sheepdog, to no avail, as Nixe approached. “Hey, Nixe. You can head on inside, I’ve just got to take Corley out.”

Nixe nodded, and slipped into the warm interior. She waited by the door, only taking off her boots, until Miri returned inside with the dog. Corley barked once at Nixe, then approached to sniff her ankles.

“So, this is Corley,” Miri said with a chuckle. “He’s a good boy, but don’t sit on the floor unless you want slobber on your face.”

As Miri tossed off her toque, Nixe took off her coat, leaving it on a hanger. “My room’s upstairs,” Miri said as she took the dog off of his leash. “Come on.”

Before Nixe could say much, Miri hurried for the stairs before them. Nixe followed her up, to a corridor lined with doors and arts on the wall between each one. She didn’t bother to look around, and slipped through the doorway Miri headed into.

One wall of the white bedroom was almost-entirely oak bookshelves, save for a gap where the window was—and even there was a low table with a few books on it. In one corner was Miri’s bed, and across the room was a long clear desk with a laptop, a large monitor, and a video game console—and an absolute mess of wires between them all.

“Like I said,” Miri said, tugging her sweater up over her head, “my parents won’t be around for most of the day. We can hang out here, play something, go watch TV downstairs. I’ll make us pizza for lunch.”

Nixe nodded, though Miri couldn’t see her now. The girl tossed her sweater onto the bed before taking her glasses off of the desk and putting them on. “What sort of shows do you like? Or what games are you into?”

As she turned to Nixe, Nixe noticed one of Miri’s eyebrow rise. Underneath her sweater, Miri wore a simple black short-sleeved blouse, but that wasn’t what Nixe’s stare fixated upon. From a little above her elbow, Miri’s arm wasn’t the same tone as the rest of her skin, but a clean white with black joints. In an instant, Nixe thought of how Miri’s arm looked as Machina, the arm with her palm-blaster. She…she hadn’t realized…

“…Nixe?” Miri asked, standing still.

Nixe turned her head away and closed her eyes. All the taunts she’d thrown at the heroines and Arriete, insults meant to distance them from her. To distance _herself_ from the good intentions she knew her enemies had held. They came flooding back into her mind, but one line of taunts stood out among the rest.

Her stomach felt like it was plummeting from the sky. That desire to run away flared within her, and she desperately wanted to act on that impulse. She didn’t deserve these attempts at friendship, especially not from Miri…

…but she had to say it. What she needed to say. “M-Miri…” she said, her voice cracking. “I’m…I’m sorry for all the things I’ve said about…about your arm…”

Her voice trailed off to a near-croak. Surely Miri would remember now. Nixe half-expected Miri to throw her out now, or at least regret this attempt at making Nixe feel welcome among them.

What Nixe didn’t expect was a pair of arms closing around her, prompting her eyes to open and a silent gasp to part her lips.

“Thank you, Nixe,” Miri said, before letting go of her. The smile she bore still felt confusing to Nixe. “Come on, I’ll show you one of my favourite shows. It’s got great animation, and it’s a little goofy, but I love the vibes of it.”

Miri took her laptop and sat on the floor against her bed, starting the show on her monitor. As Nixe joined her, her body felt a touch lighter, looser. The show, as Miri explained over the opening theme, was about a pair of intergalactic couriers who’d ended up with the amnesiac bodyguard of the Empress in their company, pulling them into a magical battle for the fate of the universe. The episode opened with the Empress plotting to recapture her bodyguard, with a wicked smile that felt like a cliched sign of the Empress not quite being herself. Nixe didn’t want to glance over to Miri, to make her think she was uncomfortable, but…had Miri and the heroines ever wondered if Nixe’s actions hadn’t been of her own free will? If that was the only reason they were willing to give her a chance?

As the scene transitioned to the three heroines in their ship, Miri asked, “So what kind of stuff are you into, Nixe? I’m pretty sure I’ve seen you at the library often.”

Shrugging, Nixe said, “Mostly fantasy.”

“Anything you’d recommend? I’m more into sci-fi, but I do like some fantasy now and then.”

“I’ve been reading the _Lunal Knight_ series recently…”

“I’ve heard of it, but haven’t gotten around to it. What’s the gist of it?”

“It’s about a girl who ends up blessed by the moon,” Nixe said, as she watched the protagonists of the show set down upon some violet swampy planet. “She has this giant-moth companion, and they have to stop a moth-goddess from destroying the world…”

“Does a giant lizard show up?”

Nixe wondered why Miri asked that, but after thinking about it, she replied, “Actually, there was a dragon in _Lunal Storm_.”

“I’ll have to check it out, then. Unless you’ve got the whole series on hold. I used to do that sort of thing when I was younger, but now, it’d feel like abusing my power as a library assistant.”

Abusing power…like using a magical gift to pursue one’s one selfish desire. Nixe forced her attention back to the screen, where the three protagonists disembarked from their ship. Two wore typical space-opera-esque civilian outfits, while the third bore violet hair and a suit of futuristic-looking dark-grey armour, with a broad mantle and a violet cape. Her almost-knightly attire did pique Nixe’s interest.

As the three ventured through the swamps, avoiding perils and fending off creatures, Nixe felt her eyelids getting very heavy. She tried to stop herself, but her mouth still stretched open wide. That only made her head swim with drowsiness, like her current stillness had made her weariness fall upon her like a hawk caught in a downpour.

“Not your cup of tea,” Miri asked, “or…”

“No, I’m liking this,” Nixe replied, unable to recall what the title of the show even was. “Just…sleepy.”

“Haven’t been getting good rest lately?”

Nixe shook her head.

Miri stared at her for a while. “I know, when this all started, I had a few restless nights myself. I was so scared my parents were going to find out. Speaking of…when can you stay ‘til? When do your parents want you back home?”

Nixe felt like she was shrinking. “I…I don’t know…”

“What do you mean? You didn’t tell them you were coming over?”

The last thing Nixe wanted was to put more of a burden on Miri, to make her worry about Nixe. Yet after a few seconds, Miri spoke. “Have you been home lately?”

Shaking her head, Nixe said, “Not since…”

“W-where have you been sleeping? Where have you been staying?”

“I just find a place to hide, and sleep on the rooftops in my magical form.”

“Are you hungry? Tired?”

Nixe _wanted_ to shrink away now, out of Miri’s notice. “Faye had my stipend delivered to me, so I’ve been able to eat. I just keep in my magical form, so I don’t get too tired…” Even now, Nixe’s eyes felt like if she closed them, she wouldn’t be able to open them once more.

Only the sound of the show continuing filled the air for what felt like a minute, a long and painful minute. “Well…you wanna have a sleepover, Nixe?”

Nixe’s eyes snapped open, and she looked at Miri. “W-wha…”

“My parents won’t mind,” Miri said, with a smile. “It’s the weekend, and I’ve had the other girls over, except for Arriete…my mom doesn’t like Outsiders. They’ll trust me if I say that I called your mom to make sure it was fine with her.”

Nixe tried to find the best words with which to decline Miri’s proposal. Her situation wasn’t this girl’s problem. It was all down to Nixe’s own choices.

Yet Miri’s smile seemed genuine. That hug earlier had, too. And Nixe had to admit to herself that she couldn’t keep going like this much longer, even with brief reprieves in her magical form. That, and she was kind of curious about this show, too. “Okay,” she said, giving a nod.

“Great! Why don’t you take a nap, and I’ll get the pizza started.”

“Do you have a spare bed?”

“Oh, just use mine for now,” Miri said, standing up and putting the show on pause. “I can set up the air mattress later tonight. Just get some rest, okay?”

As Nixe rose, Miri headed for the door. “I’ll keep the door closed, so Corley doesn’t come and give you a good-morning kiss,” she said, smirking before she left.

Nixe stared at the door for a few seconds longer before sitting down on Miri’s springy bed. She sighed, thinking of everything that’d passed between her and Miri. That first brief glimpse between the two, meeting her as Machina for the first time…Nixe’s betrayal, their clashes afterwards…

…and now she was treating Nixe just like her other heroine friends.

What had she done to deserve her kindness?

She laid onto her side, expecting her thoughts to plague her until she finally succumbed to her drowsiness. But sleep came much faster to Nixe than she had expected.

= ~ = ~ = ~ = ~ =

“Nixe…Nixe…”

A hand shaking her by the shoulder roused her from her slumber. Nixe yawned, rolling onto her back. She was still so sleepy that it took her a while to realize where she was…and who was with her.

Looking to Miri, Nixe said, “Is…is lunch ready?”

“Oh, I just put the pizza on,” Miri said. “It’s almost two, and I figured we should get lunch eaten before my folks get home. We can have the rest of the pizza for supper.”

She’d let Nixe sleep for a bit? Nixe sat up, still feeling dizzy from lack of sleep, though at least her nap had alleviated that to a degree. Instead, a myriad of thoughts swarmed her brain in its place.

“You okay, Nixe?” Miri asked, sitting next to her.

Nixe inched away from her. “Miri, you don’t need to do all of this for me. I’ll go when your parents get home—I don’t want to be a bother.”

She didn’t want to look at Miri. If anything, that flight instinct tempted her to run away, just like she had to the other girls.

“Nixe, you’re not a bother. I’ve enjoyed having you here. And I really want to check out those books you mentioned.”

Why couldn’t Nixe make herself leave now? Was it just wanting to please Elvie, after she’d made such a disaster of her visit there?

“You’ve…have you been having fun, Nixe?”

Nixe looked to her. That show had been interesting, and thinking of Miri’s dog did bring the faintest of smiles to Nixe’s face.

Miri took Nixe’s hand—with the one Nixe had unknowingly made fun of. “Chandra and Elvie told me about what happened. I was worried that you coming over would end the same way. And to be honest, I felt like it was going to be awkward trying to make friends with you, after everything that’d happened.”

Somehow, that smooth grip, unlike a regular hand yet the gesture lacking no amount of warmth, calmed that flight instinct in Nixe.

“But when you apologized for what you’d said,” Miri said, her smile growing, “it reminded me of that day…when you betrayed us. I remember how you hesitated afterwards, like you were confused yourself. Like you hadn’t wanted to attack us. You’d seemed like a fine person that first time we met. I’d wondered why you did what you did, if you were being forced to or had your reasons.”

Nixe shook her head. “It was my choice, and…”

“What you’d said to us those times after, that proclamation you made for the Luminon…it made me wonder why you believed in what the Luminon was doing. I’m not going to pry, but…”

Her other hand closed around the one of Nixe’s she held.

“Nixe, I don’t think you’re a bad person. I think you made a mistake, but you realize that now, and you’re doing everything you can to fix it.”

Some part of Nixe wanted to pull her hand free, to deny what Miri was saying. Yet, just as apologizing to Miri had seemed to lift some weight from inside of her, Nixe’s heart felt a little lighter at Miri’s words.

Still, Nixe couldn’t help to be a bit pessimistic. “Did you really think that about me? Did you think Elvie would get through to me?”

“Well, sometimes I think about people,” Miri said, her smile taking on a coy air. “I’ll admit, all this stuff that’s been happening to us has given me inspiration for my own writing.”

“You write?”

“Yeah, I’ve been writing my own sci-fi stories for a few years. It’s about a girl exploring planets, discovering secrets and solving mysteries of ancient civilizations.”

“I suppose that explains your magical form,” Nixe said with a nod.

Miri nodded in turn. “It was after my accident when I was young, when I lost my arm. I was terrified that the other kids were going to make fun of it, but when I went to school with my new prosthetic, one of my friends thought it was cool—like I had a robotic arm. We used to play space games at recess…” She chuckled, her glance shifting away from Nixe over to her bookcases. “That’s part of why I write. I would have loved to have stories and movies when I was a kid, about someone like me saving the world or having adventures…”

Nixe was smiling. There was something nice about Miri’s aspiration. “Yeah. I’ll admit, I usually read stuff that’s about people _not_ like me.”

Miri looked back to her. “If you don’t want to talk about it, Nixe, that’s okay…but does it have to do with why you haven’t gone home? Or did you run away because of what you’ve done?”

Though some voice in the back of her head warned Nixe about putting this burden onto Miri, the girl before her had shared so much with Nixe about herself. “Yeah,” Nixe said.

“Your parents must be worried sick about you.”

“My dad isn’t home,” Nixe replied. Would he have found out by now? Would someone have notified him? “My mom…”

“I’m sure she misses you. Even if she somehow knows everything you did, she’d still want to know you were alright.”

The idea that parents would always forgive their child for doing wrong was one Nixe remembered from a lot of stories. But if she had a daughter, if her own child had done what Nixe had done, how would she have felt? Could she have ever forgiven her daughter?

…how would she have felt if her daughter had disappeared?

Miri let go of Nixe’s hand before she rose from the bed. “Now, while we’re waiting for the pizza, why don’t I show you one of my favourite video games? You can have a try, it’s not too hard.”

Would it be easy to take her mind off of everything, though? It felt wrong to, as if she still felt to her core that she deserved to feel guilty in her every waking moment.

Yet there was more to Miri’s kindness than merely wanting to get along with her fellow heroine. Maybe Chandra felt differently, and Nixe couldn’t judge her for that, but Miri and Elvie…maybe they did just want to be her friend.

It was so strange to think of other people wanting to be her friend, and under these circumstances.

But as the video game started and Miri’s character took flight over a jungle landscape, Nixe forced her attention onto the screen, and let her burdens and guilt slip into the background for now.


	25. Home

Nixe slipped into slumber around eight that night, while they were watching one of Miri’s favourite classic sci-fi flicks. She didn’t even recall what it was about when she woke at nine in the morning, to find Miri absent from her own bedroom. A few minutes later, she showed up, with drops of syrup on her pyjamas and Corley by her side. Though Miri called his name, Corley still managed to charge at Nixe, giving her a few kisses before Miri called him off.

Miri’s mom had made pancakes for them; as Nixe ate hers and Miri finished her last one, Mrs. Welles quipped, “I’m not surprised you’re up so late. Most folks don’t stay up as late as Miranda does, typing away on her computer.”

Just as Nixe finished, the doorbell rang. “Oh,” Miri said, springing out of her chair. “Elvie messaged me last night, after you nodded off, and I invited her over. I hope you don’t mind.”

Where hunger had once been turned to a black hole. “Oh, no,” Nixe said, shaking her head. “That’s fine.”

She followed Miri to the door, where Mr. Welles had already let Elvie in. “Hey, you two!” Elvie said, smiling. “Did you have a fun time last night?”

“I think so,” Miri said. “Right, Nixe?”

The anxiety stilled Nixe’s tongue, but she still nodded. That was enough to widen Elvie’s smile.

“Well, let’s head upstairs, then!” Miri said.

Nixe followed the other two girls upstairs. Maybe it was just nervousness at the thought of being around Elvie again, but her mind returned to Miri’s words from yesterday. About how her mom probably missed her…

Miri let the other two enter first, then closed the door behind her. As Nixe stepped off to the side, Elvie asked, “Is everything alright, Nixe?”

She turned to the two girls, the girls who’d once been her enemies. It felt so strange to share her burdens with them, after all she’d put them through.

Yet she could see the concern in their eyes, and that softened her enough to answer. “Miri, I was thinking about what you said last night. About how my mom is probably worried about me. You’re right…I’ve got to go see her.”

“You’ve…run away from home?” Elvie stepped closer.

Nixe nodded. “I was worried that she’d find out everything, or that…that the police or the Outsiders might show up at my house for me. I didn’t want to put her through that…”

“I agree,” Miri said. “Go see your mom, Nixe.”

“I’ll go with you,” Elvie added. “I-if you’d like me to.”

Though the thought brought a shudder to Nixe’s stomach, she glanced to Elvie’s eyes, spotting the sincerity in them. The same sincerity she’d always seen when Elvie wanted her to turn away from the Luminon. The sincerity she’d hoped for on that night on the rooftop…that she did see that night.

And despite everything, Nixe still felt a smile creep over her face. “Thank you, Elvie.”

“Thanks for coming over, Nixe,” Miri said, stepping closer. “I’m really glad to get to know you better.”

Nixe knew what was coming as Miri approached closer, and though she trembled inside, she didn’t flinch as Miri hugged her. She even returned the gesture as best as she could, though part of her worried it lacked the spirit of Miri’s embrace.

= ~ = ~ = ~ = ~ =

After a farewell to Mr. and Mrs. Welles, as well as Corley, Nixe and Elvie left Miri’s house.

Elvie didn’t talk on the way, and Nixe was happy for that—her attention remained entirely on the swirling anxiety in her stomach. She felt like she was going to be sick, just like after Elvie recognized her at Amaryllis High. Would her mom make her go back to school? What if her mom didn’t want her home? Or what if her mom had only started drinking more, too much, and she’d—

“Nixe?” Elvie’s voice came from a bit behind Nixe. She must have started walking faster.

“Sorry,” Nixe said. “I’m just…”

“Worried?”

Nixe nodded. She continued walking at her faster pace, and Elvie kept up with her, still quiet. Her stomach twisted as she stepped onto Talbot Drive, and her pace slowed just a touch, but Nixe kept going.

Soon, that plain greyish house came into sight. Her dad’s car wasn’t in the driveway; Nixe wondered if maybe he had been in, if he knew she was missing, but once they approached closer, she saw that the snow covering the driveway remained undisturbed.

She stopped in front of the walkway, which lacked any fresh trails of footprints. As Nixe faced the door, her heart started to pound. What if this didn’t go well? What if her mother got angry with her, or if she didn’t even want Nixe back?

What if her mom was—

What if her mom tried—

“Nixe…” Elvie’s hand touching her shoulder made her shudder and gasp. “Sorry, I’m sorry…”

Shaking her head, Nixe said, “No, I’m sorry.”

“I’m sure you can do this, Nixe. I know your mom will be happy to see you again.”

Maybe Elvie could believe that. She’d come from a happy home, a friendly family. Did her parents fight, or did her dad ever walk out on them?

Nixe shuddered, then said, “Thank you for coming, Elvie. I…do appreciate it.”

“It’s okay, Nixe. If you need me, just message me. Let us know if everything’s alright.”

Nixe nodded, still doubting that would be the case. Taking a deep breath, she started for her front door.

What if her mom was totally drunk?

What if _it_ happened again?

Letting her mom know she was alright…that should have been easier than all of the terrible things she’d done. But what if her mom knew? A parent should have, a mother _had_ to know what was going on in their daughter’s life?

Yet Nixe knew all of the things a parent _should_ have been. It’d been what had driven her from the roost, into the wings of the Luminon. And now that path had brought her back here again. She could have left, have flown south once more, yet here she was, returning from the winter. The longer she hesitated, the more suspicious any onlookers would become.

The longer she waited, the harder it would be to finally do it.

So she reached out, and seized the doorknob.

It wouldn’t turn. Of course it was locked. Her heart calmed a touch at this anticlimax. Once more did the desire to fly away take root, but Nixe pried her grip loose from the knob and knocked upon the door three times.

After several seconds…nothing happened. Maybe she’d knocked too quietly. Taking a deep breath, Nixe knocked three more times, louder this time.

Just when Nixe started to wonder if her mother wasn’t home, or if maybe she was too drunk to notice—or perhaps even worse, Nixe contemplated with her stomach sinking—the door opened. The woman before her looked even more unkempt than usual, her hair a frizzy mess and dressed in an old sweater of her dad’s that was covered in stains.

For a moment, her mom seemed confused, but then her eyes widened. “Nixe! Nixe, dear!”

Her hand grabbed Nixe’s wrist, pulling her inside. Nixe closed the door before looking to her mom. “Nixe, I was worried sick about you! I thought something might have happened, that you might have gotten kidnapped or…or…”

She must have been worried, then. As much as she deserved the full truth, Nixe just couldn’t bring herself to admit it. “I…I was…” Recent events gave her the perfect excuse. “I was staying at a friend’s, actually…”

Her mother stared for a moment, before a scowl overtook her face. “A friend’s? Nixe, where were you? Why didn’t you tell me anything? Why didn’t you say anything? I could barely sleep with you gone! Thank god your father didn’t call, didn’t ask to talk with you…he would have made our life hell if he’d found out you’d vanished, Nixe!”

Everything inside of Nixe trembled. “I…I…I’m really sorry, Mom…”

“You…you’d better be…” Her mother wagged a shaking finger at Nixe, like she’d used to when Nixe was much younger. Back when such gestures didn’t make Nixe flinch. “Oh, young woman, you are so grounded for this… Why didn’t you say anything? Why did you just vanish?”

She clutched onto Nixe’s coat. A squeal escaped Nixe’s throat, and her body involuntary recoiled. Her mother snapped back at the same time. “Nixe,” she said, “why are you acting so spooked? You…you should know how much trouble you’d be in!”

Her mother didn’t know. After all this time, her mom didn’t know. Just thinking about it brought tears to Nixe’s eyes. “Mom, I…I have to be honest. I…I didn’t know if I was going to come home again.”

“What do you mean?” Her mother backed into the wall behind her. “You…you were going to run away from home?”

Feeling herself trembling still, Nixe nodded.

She expected another outburst. More blame. More anger. Maybe it’d happen again now, with everything Nixe had put her through.

Instead, her mother pressed against the wall—for a moment, Nixe thought she was about to faint. “Nixe, dear…” She slid a hand over her face. “I thought as much.”

Nixe couldn’t speak a word. She just stood ready, in case her mom did fall over.

“All these years, I know your father and I…we haven’t been the kind of parents I wished we could have been. When we fell in love, when I told him I would be having you, he…he was so happy, so eager.” A faint hint of a smile fluttered upon her mother’s face for a moment. “A daughter, just like both of us wanted. But the stress took its toll, and I don’t think either of us really knew how much work it’d be. I kept it together when you were younger, let him flake off or whatever the hell he did away from home…” Her mother gave a dismissive wave of her hand. “But then I couldn’t take it anymore, and I just let it out, and we fought and fought and…” A heavy shudder shook her body. “Nixe, I’d always think of you crying whenever it happened, but it’d be one thing or another and I would just snap at him…”

Nixe couldn’t even remember when it’d really started, how young she’d been when she realized she didn’t have the happy family all the cartoons and picture books showed. The first time her dad had gone on a “business trip”, versus the first time she’d realized it had nothing to do with his job at all.

“I know it must have made your childhood hell,” her mother continued, staring at the floor to her left instead of Nixe. “To have me and your dad fighting all the time, for him to be away when you’d always loved him reading you bedtime stories.” Nixe shook a bit at that thought. “I knew you didn’t want to be here, and I couldn’t blame you…I couldn’t at all. I knew why you hated me, hated this house as much as I do. I’ve been a terrible mother…”

Nixe shook like a leaf, like a chick trying to fly in a storm only to be blown about. “M-Mom…it’s not you. It’s not _you_ that’s…the problem…”

Only once in her life had she ever worked up the nerve. As terrified as the thought made her, Nixe couldn’t stand to see her mom like this, thinking that her daughter genuinely hated her, rather than…

“Mom, when you drink, it all gets worse. You stop caring, you get angrier with Dad, you barely even notice—”

“Nixe, this has nothing to do with my drinking!” Her mother now glared towards Nixe, yet her eyes didn’t quite fix upon her.

The words burst through rabid, ragged breaths. “Yes it does, Mom!”

Her mother’s eyes widened, as if a speech about the tone her daughter was using was incoming. If she let a single word out, then Nixe knew she might lose her nerve—and never find it again in her entire life. So she spoke, her hands clenched into tight fists, her mind focusing on her fingernails pressing into her palms in a desperate yet futile attempt to keep herself from crying.

“Four years ago… It was four years ago, I know it. You and Dad, you’d broken up again.” Her voice had slowly risen in pitch, and softened in volume. “You went straight to drinking, and I was crying about it. You told me to go away, to leave you alone, and I…I didn’t.” Her mom finally looked to her. Nixe shut her eyes as firmly as her hands. “I was shouting, asking why you couldn’t get along, why you were always so mean whenever you drank. I…” Just thinking about how she’d placed the blame in such a way evoked a pang of revulsion at herself, even if she had been such a troubled preteen. “I’d said that maybe if you didn’t drink, you and Dad wouldn’t always fight.”

“Nixe, I don’t—”

She didn’t let her mom finish. “Then you hit me.”

Some kind of disgusted noise left her mom. Like she didn’t believe it. “Yes, you did. You slapped me across the face, told me to go to my room. You’d never…you’d never done that before. And…and…”

Her mother leaned forward. “I’ve never hurt you, Nixe, not once! Why…why are you saying…”

“Because you don’t remember!” Nixe’s words came out choked by sobs. “Because you were so drunk you couldn’t remember it the next morning. You didn’t say a word about it, and I…I…”

“Nixe…Nixe…how could you say such things about—”

“ _Why would I lie?_ ”

Nixe’s weeping eyes widened after those words came out as a shriek, a shrill cry that rang out like the scream of a hawk over the low chirps of its prey. Her mom shrank against the wall, her eyes tearing up. In an instant, Nixe shrivelled inside. She hadn’t wanted to hurt her mom like that…

“Mom…” she continued after a deep breath. “I swear. It happened. I promise I’m telling the truth. And I’m saying this because I love you. I love you, Mom. I’m so sorry I said that…but I really, really want you to stop. You’re so much happier when you’re not drunk, so much kinder, and…”

No more words could come to her. All Nixe could do was throw her arms around her mom, hold her tight, sob into her shoulder. It wasn’t as much a desire to show how she truly felt as much as her own collapse, like a child needing to bawl to their mommy.

As Nixe cried, her mother’s choked voice squeaked out. “Oh my god…I…I…I didn’t…you wouldn’t…”

Nixe couldn’t do anything but sob, and soon her mother joined her embrace, her own crying filling their broken home.

It came to an end when Nixe’s mother lifted her head up. “I’m so sorry, Nixe. Everything, all of this…m-my drinking…I just wanted things to work between me and your father. That’s all we wanted, why he wanted to keep trying, why I let him back in… I just wanted you to have your mom and dad together, but…but you didn’t have either of us, did you…”

That’d been what Nixe had always wanted. To have a happy family, a mom and dad that got along, for them to be able to share that love with their daughter. It’d been her one longing in life, the one thing she’d believed was too much to ask for. The mere hope of such was what had convinced her to join the Luminon in their terrible mission. To change what she knew in her heart would never change. She’d only wanted her family to be happy…

“M…M-Mom…” Nixe said, slowly drawing out of their hug. “Mom, you and Dad…you don’t have to. I know you want what’s best for me, but…I want what’s best for you two as well. It’s not going to work, it’s never going to work. You and Dad, you’re just not…”

“Nixe…”

“I want both of you to be happy. That’s what would make _me_ happy. I’ll tell Dad about it, too. Whatever we decide, together…something that works out for all of us.” She wiped her eyes with the back of her hand. “I know you both love me, and I love you both…I don’t want you to have to be unhappy just to try to make me happy.”

Her mother stared at her, unblinking. “Nixe, I…understand. I’ll…have a talk with your father. About everything. Maybe not about you running away, but yes…about what you said.”

“Thank you, Mom.”

The two stared at each other through sparkling eyes, then they threw their arms around the other together. “Nixe, dear, I love you.”

“You too, Mom.”

When they let go of each other, her mother said, “You…go to your room. I’ll make you lunch in a bit.”

Nixe nodded. “Thank you, Mom.”

She didn’t want to leave her mom’s side, but she finally took off her coat and boots, then started for her bedroom.

“Nixe.”

Her voice still low, Nixe said, “What, Mom?”

A pained smile crept over her mom’s face, her eyes still teary. “Nixe, you’re right. I need to stop drinking. If I let myself do that to my daughter, if I couldn’t remember it, if I couldn’t even realize how my daughter must have felt that day…”

Nodding, Nixe said, “Thank you, Mom.”

Nixe continued to her bedroom. She started to close the door behind her, but stopped herself, leaving it ajar.

Her backpack fell by her bed, and Nixe collapsed onto her sheets. A distant memory came to her: how her mom would toss her blankets into the dryer on the first snowy night of winter, back when Nixe was younger. It’d been her dad who’d started the tradition, but her mom had carried it on whenever he was away.

Though the house was far from the chill outside, her sheets felt like they were fresh from the dryer, tempting her to wrap herself up like she was a child again. Just the thought of being in her bed, as opposed to hiding out on some snowy rooftop…

Of all the things Nixe could have done, she simply laid still, savouring being home—savouring how happy she was to be happy to be home.

= ~ = ~ = ~ = ~ =

Half an hour later, Nixe pulled herself off of her bed. Her mind had been busy, and the house all but silent. But she wanted to make sure…

She left her bedroom. A familiar stench wafted from the kitchen, one Nixe associated with bad memories. But such a strong smell…?

When Nixe stepped into the kitchen, she spotted the collection of empty bottles on the counter. An empty case rested on the floor, while a half-full one was in front of her mom. Her bottle-opener was in one shaking hand, and a sealed bottle in the other.

Walking closer, Nixe asked, “Mom, do you…need any help with that?”

Her mother glanced up at the sound of Nixe’s voice. The bottle slipped from her hand, though thankfully it didn’t break in the sink. “Nixe…”

As Nixe stepped to her side, her mom returned her stare to the bottle, picking it back up. “Could you…just stay here with me, while I…”

“Yes, Mom.”

Despite her simpler request, Nixe still reached for bottles, and her mother still handed her the opener. One by one, the two of them poured the rest down the sink, further flooding the air with the stink of beer. Her mom sobbed softly as they neared the end, and though Nixe wanted to say something, she didn’t want to interrupt.

Once the last drop of the last bottle ran down the drain, her mother gathered the bottles in the cases and set them in the corner where they usually gathered slowly. She walked back to the sink, the two looking at each other once again before hugging.

After about a minute, her mother said to her, “Nixe, you’re…you’re still grounded, dear…”

“Of course, Mom.” She let go of her mother, then said, “I’m sorry for worrying you so much.”

“I’m sorry for so many more things, dear. But I’m proud of you.”

Nixe felt her smile shrink. Maybe her mom wouldn’t be so proud if she knew _everything_ about her daughter. But rather than let such thoughts weigh upon her, Nixe kept smiling as she returned to her bedroom.

She took out her tablet, plugging it in to let it charge. The screen turned on, with the icon for the chat app on the display. Remembering Elvie’s request, she tapped the icon, starting a private message to Elvie and Miri.

It was halfway through writing it that Nixe paused. She reread what she had typed. The happy news she was sharing with the two of them.

An odd chuckle escaped her, and though her eyes began to tear up as she continued typing, her mouth remained in a grin.


	26. Mercy

When Nixe woke the next morning, part of her thought she was dreaming of her bed, of the familiar bedroom around her. She expected to wake up for real in another pile of snow on another rooftop, but after several minutes passed without snapping out of this dream, that doubt vanished.

Nixe pulled herself out from beneath her sheets. She’d washed up the night before, gotten into cozy pyjamas, and had a change of clothes ready on her desk. As she sat on the edge of her bed, contemplating making her lunch for the day, Nixe’s thoughts turned to her mother. How had the night been for her? She thought about alcohol withdrawal—maybe it’d be best for her mom to have her today.

She headed out into the living room, where her mom was watching television. “How are you doing, Mom?”

Her mother looked to her, with a smile upon her lips but an uneasiness in her eyes. “I’ll manage. What are you? Are you going to school today?”

The thought filled her with a chill so unlike the winter air she’d become accustomed to. What sort of rumours might have sprung up in her absence? Had anyone even noticed her missing from classes? What would her teachers believe? Had anyone but Elvie figured out her secret?

…then again, part of her wanted to see Elvie and Miri again. Maybe even Chandra, if she was willing. “I will,” Nixe finally answered. “But Mom, if you start feeling unwell…please call a doctor, alright?”

“Of course, dear. I’m going to call my doctor today. He’ll probably know where I should start with…quitting.”

Nixe smiled. She would have liked to be there for her mother, but her mom wanted her to get back to school. Once she’d made her sliced-chicken sandwich and bottle of fruit punch, she ate a quick bowl of cereal before heading out.

Other students were already on their way to the bus stop. Nixe froze, wondering what they would think when they saw her. But none of them seemed to react once she finally worked up the nerve, not even when she joined the crowd waiting for the bus.

As she stared in the direction the bus would come from, Nixe overheard the chatter of the other students. What would they think if Nixe offered an opinion, or a little quip on whatever they were discussing? Her mind wandered back to her sleepover with Miri, where the two had talked about their favourite books throughout the day.

Those thoughts brought a smile on her face that remained when the bus finally arrived, and as she found her way to a seat.

= ~ = ~ = ~ = ~ =

All of Nixe’s teachers demanded an explanation for her absence. The best she could offer was an apology and a vague claim of “personal stuff”. To her surprise, half of her teachers seemed to soften at this response, though they still reminded her of assignments and homework she’d missed.

A cross of anticipation and anxiety fluttered around inside of Nixe as the minutes ticked down to lunch period. Once the bell rang, Nixe made her way down to the lunch hall. Before she had much of a chance to look around, a familiar voice called out, “Hey, Nixe!”

She looked to a nearby table, where Elvie and Chandra were sitting along with a few other girls Nixe didn’t recognize. Chandra scooted over a little, making a space between her and Elvie. For a second, the feeling of being undeserving crept up upon her, as if the sight of them offering her a seat was akin to an ominous raven.

Nixe still forced a smile as she sat with them. “This is Nixe, everyone!” Elvie said to her other friends. “And Nixe, this is Amea, Lindsey—”

As Elvie gestured to each of her friends, a girl with short dark hair next to Lindsey stood swiftly from her seat. Before anyone could react, the girl hurried off with her backpack. “I guess Parker just remembered something she’d forgotten,” Chandra said, with a hint of unease in her voice.

Nixe’s eyes lowered to the table. Elvie and Chandra returned to chatting with the other girls, but Nixe kept to her own thoughts. If only she could apologize to Parker, if Parker would even give her the time of day—and if she wasn’t worried about Parker being upset about one of the other girls telling Nixe the truth about her.

“ _Children of anima._ ”

Though it didn’t click in Nixe’s conscious thoughts at first, she still let out a sudden yelp at the sound of that voice. For a moment, she thought—

“What was that?” one of Elvie’s friends cried out.

“ _Children of ether._ ”

Nixe glanced to Elvie and Chandra, Both of them had wide eyes, though were less visibly-distressed than many of the other students in the lunch hall.

The voice of the Luminon boomed through the air once more. “ _Time and time again, I have shown you the darkness that lies within all of your hearts. The time of enlightenment draws near, and yet there remains those who oppose the peace and happiness you will all know soon._ ”

Nixe gripped the edge of the table, trying to look normal.

“ _Many have been freed from their burdens already, with their darkness cast off from their hearts. More awaken with each passing day, broken by the failings and flaws of their fellow people. It may be that to truly understand your fellow mortals, I must awaken all that remain dormant, so that you may witness the true toll of the darkness that plagues your kind._ ”

Her body stiffened. The Luminon wouldn’t do that—they’d never go that far just to—

“ _But I shall stay my hand. There is an alternative._ ”

An alternative? Was the Luminon truly forcing some kind of cruel ultimatum upon—

“ _The one who calls herself ‘Ribbon’ shall surrender herself to me before dusk._ ”

Nixe would have sprang out of her seat, if not for her knees smashing into the metal bars beneath the lunch table. The pain barely registered in her mind.

“ _Those among your people who see you as a paragon of good, those who look upon you for forgiveness and mercy, shall know that you are no less burdened than they are. It is your decision…‘heroines’ of humanity._ ”

The voice fell quiet, and several seconds of silence passed, as if everyone was expecting more. What came next was a boy shouting in panic, a cry that set off all the dominoes. More fearful screams flooded the cafeteria, with students hurrying out into the halls.

Nixe pulled herself loose from the table, not paying attention to anyone else, not even Elvie and Chandra. What the Luminon said about “forgiveness and mercy”…they must have meant one human in particular.

She walked away, her legs still unsteady beneath her. Despite everything, a voice in her head refused to believe what she’d just heard. With all the Luminon had done, they viewed their work as for the greater good of mortalkind. What good would come of unleashing countless Withouts upon Garden City?

But more terrifying to Nixe was their alternative. There was no mistaking what the Luminon had in mind for Elvie. The Luminon knew what would happen—it’d been why they hadn’t purged the darkness from Nixe’s heart when they first met.

The entire student body had heard it. Maybe even the entire city. Nixe herself certainly had. And yet she could barely believe it herself.

= ~ = ~ = ~ = ~ =

A few students were missing from classes, and the teachers seemed unnerved during their lessons, yet the rest of the school day continued on as usual. Nixe pretended to work, unable to focus on anything the teachers said or her work.

Between classes, she checked her tablet, just in case one of the other girls had sent any message. There weren’t any private messages, so she tapped the icon for the main chat.

Elvie had left a message an hour prior, probably at the end of lunch. _After school._

The briefness of it sent a chill through Nixe. As frightened as she was about all of this, what was going through the mind of the girl that the Luminon demanded the sacrifice of?

Nixe wished she could find Elvie, alone, and give her a hug. But she had to get to class.

= ~ = ~ = ~ = ~ =

Once the last period of the day ended, Nixe waited at the front of the school. Chandra soon arrived; neither said a word as they left Amaryllis High together.

Nixe had no idea where they were going. Perhaps one of the heroines’ usual gathering-spots, a rooftop or somewhere else secret.

Instead, Chandra led the way into a tall grey apartment building, to the eleventh floor. As they approached #1114, the air flickered in front of them, followed by a familiar figure taking form from nothing.

“Hey, Arriete,” Chandra said to the horned-rabbit Outsider, before opening the door. The almiran entered first, and though Nixe’s throat tightened, she followed her inside.

The apartment within was spacious, with clean white walls and a small kitchen overlooking a cozy den. Three couches of different styles sat facing the television, with the other heroines gathered near them—but not seated. Elvie held her head low, while the short-haired girl from earlier glared at Nixe as she approached. Nixe’s stomach shrank within her.

Elvie looked around to the others. “So…the Luminon wants _me_.”

“We won’t let them have you!” Parker snapped. “We’re not going to let them take you away!”

“Will the Luminon carry through with its threat?” Miri asked. “Who knows how many Withouts have yet to awaken?”

“Well, if the Luminon thinks she’s going to add Elvie to them,” Chandra said, crossing her arms, “they’re sorely mistaken.”

“Yes!” cried Arriete. “I will give myself to them in your place, Elvie!”

“Arriete,” Miri replied, “you’d still have your ears and horn. And I’m sure the Luminon would sense you weren’t Elvie anyway.” The almiran’s stance drooped in response.

“If the Luminon wants to throw a hundred Withouts at us,” Parker said, “then we’ll take on a hundred Withouts! We aren’t going to play along with this!”

Elvie shook her head. “There’s no way the five of us could take on a hundred Withouts, or however many there are. If they awaken throughout the city, we won’t be able to stop them all in time. Even if the Outsiders helped us, there might still be too many…”

“What will we do then?” Miri asked, her hands tight enough. “We…we can’t let the Luminon…”

Closing her eyes, Elvie said in a firm voice, “I have to do it.”

“What?” Chandra shouted.

“No!” Arriete screamed, her form warping into the center of the group. “Elvie, you cannot!”

“Arriete’s right!” Nixe said, stepping forward. “Elvie, if you give yourself up—”

“No one asked _you_!” roared Parker. Her outburst, coupled with the ferocious glare, forced Nixe back. “If it wasn’t for you, maybe we wouldn’t be at this point!”

“Parker, please!” Ribbon cried, her voice cracking. “This isn’t Nixe’s fault. She isn’t making the Luminon do this…and she isn’t making me either.”

Nixe lowered her head. The Luminon’s words had singled her out. She still wanted to believe that the Luminon wasn’t willing to go this far. Yet all she could think of to have prompted this, the only reason the Luminon wouldn’t have made this demand earlier…was Nixe’s reconciling with her mother. The thought made Nixe wince, but she wouldn’t have believed the Luminon would turn one of the heroines into a Without…

“There has to be some way we can come with you!” Miri said. “To take the fight directly to the Luminon!”

“Maybe,” Elvie replied, “but I’m sure the Luminon will expect that.”

“Do you really think the Luminon will stop what they’re doing?” asked Chandra. “She’s just going to make _you_ into another Without.”

Elvie took a moment to nod. “And I’m sure the five of you would be able to stop me if that happens. But we just can’t let the Luminon carry through with their threat.”

What the Luminon planned now might be an even greater threat. “Elvie, if…” Nixe started, feeling her voice choke in her throat. Just speaking up made her feel like everyone’s eyes were upon her—judging her. Parker certainly didn’t trust her, but did any of the others question her? Did they wonder if she was still a mole for the Luminon?

“Then I’ll challenge the Luminon myself!” Parker said. “Let’s see them defend everything they’ve done before us!”

“I like the sound of that!” Chandra said, pumping her fist.

Though Elvie nodded, just barely, her tone didn’t change. “I don’t think the Luminon will play along. We’ll see, but…if I have to do it to keep everyone safe, I will.”

Nixe’s stomach twisted. She _had_ to say it. “Elvie, please—”

Elvie’s eyes met hers, and a small smile spread over her lips—while Parker’s scowl grew behind her. The smile couldn’t mask the fear in Elvie’s eyes. “Nixe, I trust you just as much as the others. I’m sure you’ll do your best to protect Garden City.” Behind her, Parker looked away. “I wish we could have gotten to know each other more, but I’m sure you’ll all find a way to stop the Luminon, and bring back everyone they’ve taken away.”

Nixe’s teeth pressed into her lower lip; so many of those people had been taken away thanks to Nixe herself… “Elvie, you can’t…”

That smile finally vanished. “I have to. I’m sorry…”

If it wasn’t for her, maybe the Luminon wouldn’t have gone this far. Maybe they would have stopped them long ago, if she hadn’t betrayed the heroines all for herself, for something she’d been able to settle without magic…

A low squeak escaped Nixe as her flight instinct overtook her, and she bolted away from the others and out of the apartment.

She’d just made it out of the front doors when she sensed a pulse of energy. The opening of one of the Luminon’s portals.

No…not now…

= ~ = ~ = ~ = ~ =

Nixe raced down the street, through a cluster of abandoned cars before the great white cloud that had formed in the center of an intersection. Yet unlike the other portals the Luminon used to steal away victims, this one wasn’t steadily expanding.

And unlike those other portals, this one was flanked by Withouts. About ten of them, ranging from feral-looking creatures to hulking figures crackling with energy. Some bore similarities to Outsiders Nixe had seen, such as a dragonfly-crowned odona Without that reminded her of Anise, of that Outsider she’d fought.

If she’d still had the Luminon’s power, Nixe doubted she’d have any problem with this many Withouts. Now, she doubted she’d fare well against even one on her own.

She sensed the other heroines running up the street behind her. Before Nixe could turn to them, the Luminon’s voice echoed forth from the portal. “ _None other shall approach. Only the one who calls herself Ribbon shall enter._ ”

The other heroines gathered next to Nixe. Ribbon stepped ahead of the others. “What are these Withouts here for, Luminon? Will they be returned to normal if I give myself up to you?”

“ _They are the first who shall unleash their darkness upon your city if you do not submit. If that is your demand, then I shall withdraw my magic from them once you enter._ ”

Arriete lunged forth, before Ribbon could speak or move. “Ribbon, you cannot give yourse—”

One of the Withouts, a hovering figure clad in a tight dark-green suit and shrouded beneath a massive jellyfish-like bell with long-eel like tendrils dangling from beneath, raised a webbed hand. Several of those tendrils aimed at Arriete, releasing torrents of bubbles that blasted the almiran to the ground. “Arriete!” Machina cried, taking a step in her direction—then freezing, her left hand bracing her right arm, as she looked to the Withouts before her.

“ _Enough of this. Should another approach, your people will know the chaos that dwells among them. Come forth, Ribbon. It is time for your world, for your people, for the ones who follow you, to understand that even its heroines are no stronger than they are._ ”

Staring into the brilliant void before her, Ribbon said, “My friends are strong. They’re selfless and courageous. They’ve given so much to stand against you and all that you’ve done to our city, our families and friends. I know they’ll continue to fight for others—I trust each and every one of them to remain strong until the terrible things you’ve done have been ended once and for all. I believe in them.” Her head bowed for a moment, then rose with determination once more. “I believe in _everyone_.”

“Elvie…” Bounce said.

Nixe’s hands trembled. She had to say _something_ , tell her the truth, stop Elvie—

Ribbon walked forth. The cloud of light widened before her, like an entrance to swallow her up.

“No!” Nixe screamed, dashing forth just as the light began to envelop Ribbon.

Her hand reached for Elvie just as she vanished within the white cloud…and her fingers passed through nothing but empty air, charged with lingering ether. The cloud began to shrink away, fading out of existence with a wink of light as so many other of the Luminon’s portals had done. The Withouts around them began to glow, their forms returning to their regular human or Outsider forms before the light faded and they collapsed in the street.

Nixe fell onto her knees in the middle of the intersection, her hand still outstretched. Behind her came the footsteps of the other heroines. “R-Ribbon!” Machina cried.

“We…we shouldn’t have let her…” said Bounce, her voice as shaky as Nixe imagined her body to be.

“ _Dammit!_ ” Nimbus screamed. “Luminon! You’re going to hell! You hear me?”

“Ribbon…” came Arriete’s voice. “Will Ribbon become like another of the Luminon’s monsters?”

Nixe only moved through her ragged breaths. Part of her still couldn’t believe this, wanted to believe the Luminon hadn’t just done what she had watched.

But that disbelief was nothing compared to the pain in her heart, the fear that maybe they’d never get Elvie back…

…the knowledge of what Elvie would become.

Nixe’s extended hand lowered for a moment, before she clapped both hands over her face and started to cry.


	27. Unleashed

Nixe still felt like she was going to throw up as she opened the door into her home. As she had walked down her street, the thoughts of what had happened today gave way, at least a little, to remembering what had happened the day before. Her pace had picked up steadily, until she was jogging for her front door.

As she stepped into the den, her mother turned to her immediately. “Nixe, did you hear that voice today?” Her mom still looked awfully frazzled, and Nixe could have sworn she was shaking.

Nixe nodded. “Y-yeah, Mom. But…are you alright?” She sat down on the couch next to her mom. “Are you feeling okay?”

Her mother shook her head. “My god, Nixe, I want a drink so badly. Especially now, with…” She looked away, then forced her moist eyes back to Nixe. “I talked to my doctor. He’s recommending me to a rehab clinic, to monitor my withdrawal symptoms. I might be there for several days. Nixe…”

“I’ll be okay, Mom,” Nixe said. “I’ll take care of the house. What matters is you getting better.”

Her mom nodded, smiling. “Thank you, Nixe. I’m just worried…I always thought your father was paranoid, but after hearing that voice today. I can’t even remember what it said, but…” Nixe tried her best to keep a straight face. “Dear, will you promise not to stay out late while I’m away? Just in case something happens?”

Though the odds were that she’d have to break that promise, Nixe still replied, “Of course, Mom. I’ll get supper started, okay?”

Her mother rested back into the sofa, trying to focus on the television. The local news would be on this channel soon—Nixe hadn’t seen her mom watch the news in years.

As she stood, Nixe’s mother asked, “Nixe, dear…how was school? Was everything okay?”

That nauseous feeling resurged in full force. “Y-yeah, everything was fine, Mom.” She left without giving her mother a chance to inquire further.

Nixe would have preferred to keep her thoughts at bay until she was safe in her room, but they all swarmed her as soon as she was in the kitchen. Her mother, even through withdrawal, must have been worried about her all day, after hearing the Luminon’s words.

But what about Elvie’s family? What would they think when their daughter didn’t come home today? Would they realize what had happened, _who_ she was, what would become of her?

Would it be any better if Elvie _did_ return to her parents, only to awaken at home, before any of the heroines could find her?

Nixe had to put down the pan she held. She clutched her stomach, trying to let the unease pass before she continued with dinner.

= ~ = ~ = ~ = ~ =

Nixe didn’t sleep a wink that night. Once her mother had gone to bed, she transformed into Dove and laid beneath her sheets, waiting for the sun to rise, half-expecting to sense the Luminon’s work in the middle of the night.

When morning finally arrived, she returned the bird to its cage. Weariness set upon her as her normal feet landed on her bedroom floor, but it wasn’t nearly as bad as her exhaustion had gotten without her bed at home.

A thought crossed her mind, and she checked the chat app on her tablet. The main chat was full of discussion about yesterday, about what today…might bring. She scrolled up, spotting her name in the posts, with Chandra wondering if she’d check in and Parker expressing indifference before leaving the chat herself.

She almost missed the private-message notification. When she tapped on it, a message from Miri appeared. _Please don’t blame yourself, Nixe. This isn’t your fault. We’ll save Elvie, we’ll stop the Luminon, and we’ll bring back everyone they’ve taken._

Nixe tried to muster such optimism, but surely Miri had her doubts as well.

= ~ = ~ = ~ = ~ =

She didn’t bother with breakfast or making herself lunch. Nixe just didn’t have any appetite. Her mom was still shaky, though she assured Nixe she would be checking into detox. Nixe hoped everything would go well; something going wrong with her mom was the last thing she needed…

A light rain fell over the neighbourhood as Nixe headed to the bus stop. All the students gathered at the curb, even after they boarded the bus, said little to each other. A chill hung in the air, one different from the cool late-winter breeze. At first, Nixe feared they were thinking about the same thing she was…until she recalled that everyone had heard the Luminon’s voice. That they were still going to school was kind of a surprise.

When the bus reached Amaryllis High, Nixe hurried through the rain and into the school. As she pulled off her hood, she looked around the crowd of students coming in from the other buses.

Among them was a girl with her hair tied into neat pigtails, kept in place by a pair of yellow ribbons.

Nixe’s heart jumped into her throat. She had to…do _something_. She had to know. It was almost like watching a ghost, someone she knew shouldn’t have been there, yet was walking right before Nixe.

Hurrying through the crowd, Nixe approached and said, “Elvie?”

Elvie slowed as she glanced to her. “Hey, Nixe.”

Nixe froze, and Elvie continued on without another word. Her voice usually had a spirit to it, an energy. Today, her words hadn’t carried any of that. Even when Elvie had contemplated her own sacrifice, even that fateful day on the rooftop, Nixe had heard that _something_ in Elvie’s voice. It wasn’t as if a coldness or hostility had taken its place, but whatever that something was…Elvie was without it.

The girl who walked away from her was Elvie Radant, yet just _wasn’t_.

The bell that came five minutes before first class rang. Classes were the least of Nixe’s worries as she hurried into the halls. Elvie had vanished into the crowd somewhere, but there wasn’t anything Nixe could do…

…unless she awakened.

Where were the others? With all of the students around, finding either Parker or Chandra would be like finding a needle in a haystack. One idea came to mind, and though it twisted her stomach, that was nothing compared to her lingering fear.

“E-excuse me!” Nixe said aloud. A few people stopped. “Does anyone know where I can find Chandra from the dodgeball team?”

A girl stepped closer. “Her locker’s down that way,” she said, pointing to a nearby corridor. “And I think she has Gym first this week?”

“Thank you!” Nixe said to the girl, before hurrying down the hallway. Which locker was Chandra’s, which locker—

—it had to be the one Chandra was putting her backpack into now. “Chandra!” Nixe called, squeezing through the crowd.

Chandra raised an eyebrow. “What’s u—” As soon as she spotted Nixe, her voice came to an abrupt stop. “She’s here?” she asked in a near-whisper.

Nixe nodded. “Let Parker know,” she whispered. “We have to keep an eye on her.”

Chandra nodded, before turning back to her locker. Nixe headed on her way, trying to keep her pace steady to hide her unease.

What the Luminon had told her was that the source of a person’s greatest anger or fear or unhappiness triggered their awakening. She didn’t know Elvie nearly enough to even begin to imagine what that could have been. And without being in any class with Elvie…

Nixe had no idea how she was going to get through class, but the last thing she wanted was someone else realizing there was something very, very wrong involving her.

= ~ = ~ = ~ = ~ =

Her first-period Biology class dragged on and on, the teacher’s dull lecture making it even worse. Any moment, it could happen…

When the bell rang, Nixe’s first thought was to look for Chandra, for Parker, for Elvie herself. Yet she didn’t have the slightest clue where any of them would be, save for going out of her way to find Chandra’s locker, if she was even there when Nixe found it again. Her stomach rumbling from hunger didn’t help the building anxiety as she found her way to History class and took her seat. She felt like she was going to meltdown, have a panic attack or something…

Mr. Marwood started to talk to the class; Nixe couldn’t even remember yesterday’s lesson now. She pretended to read her textbook, praying that he didn’t call upon her to answer a question, thinking she might explode if he spoke her na—

“…Miss Fulton?”

As she lifted her head, a sharp squeak almost broke loose from her. But the pulse of energy that washed over her froze up even that reaction.

“Did I startle you?” asked Mr. Marwood, a puzzled look on his face. “Please pay more attention, Nixe.”

“Sorry,” she blurted out, managing to sound normal even as her heart started to race. She kept her breathing calm, her body still, even as her hands clenched the inside of her desk.

…that energy had come from somewhere behind her. The rest of the school was in the other direction. It hadn’t been strong enough to be as close as within this building…and Nixe figured that Elvie awakening would be a far more powerful release of energy.

Maybe it wasn’t her, but it was still another Without threatening the city. Nixe looked to the clock. Sixteen minutes remained of class. Sixteen minutes that the Without would be free to terrorize and destroy—

Someone walked by in the hallway, fast enough that Nixe only recognized them by the adornments in her hair, the yellow ribbons.

She only barely kept herself from shouting out Elvie’s name. Where was she going? Had she just left class, or—

Nixe’s eyes widened, and everything inside of her froze solid.

She knew now.

Raising her hand, Nixe waited for Mr. Marwood to acknowledge. “May I go to the washroom, please?”

“Yes,” he replied. He didn’t seem suspicious.

Nixe walked out of the classroom calmly. Only once she was away from the door did she start running. She didn’t know which way Elvie had gone, but knew where her path would take her.

She hurried down the nearest stairwell, then headed out the back door and ran for the sidewalk. It was chilly even with her sweater, yet Nixe knew her shivering wasn’t from the cold.

When she reached the intersection, she spotted Elvie walking down the sidewalk on the other side of the road. She sprinted across before the light could change, slowly catching up towards Elvie.

“Elvie!” Nixe shouted, drawing the attention of other pedestrians—but not Elvie. “ _Elvie!_ ”

Even once Nixe reached a few feet behind her, Elvie didn’t stop or even slow. She carried on at the same steady pace, even with people fleeing away from the road ahead. Cars had been left running in the street, stalling traffic despite the cacophony of horns.

A roar filled the air as a lumbering monster stepped around the corner. It looked like something formed entirely out of jagged crystal, a giant golem three storeys tall. Each step it took shook the ground, cracked the pavement.

And yet Elvie continued towards it. “Elvie!” Nixe shouted, grabbing her arm.

Elvie simply wrenched herself free from Nixe’s grasp and headed onto the road, before the monster.

The golem Without turned to her, its mighty club-like hands smashing a pair of cars as it slammed down before it, seemingly as a show to intimidate.

Elvie stood still, and waved her arms in a bow-pattern.

Magical energy erupted from Elvie, washing over Nixe. It felt just like Nixe herself was transforming, like she was enveloped in that energy from within. White light enveloped Elvie’s form, with ribbons of light weaving around her body. Yet it wasn’t simply that power that transformed them into their magical forms. Something else mingled with it, even if it left no visible trace upon Elvie’s transformation. A pulse of ether just as familiar as their own powers.

What Nixe felt was the awakening of a Without.

The moment Elvie’s feet touched down upon the street, as the light around her faded, she blasted off at the golem Without. Before the crystalline titan could even react, she swung out with violet ribbons, each strike shattering shards off of its body and knocking it back further and further. One ribbon caught the Without around its neck, yanking it forward. As it caught itself with its club-arms, Elvie sprang into the air, swinging her ribbons down again and again, filling the air with glittering dust. Then both violet ribbons coiled around the creature’s front limbs, pulling it off of the ground. One ribbon loosened from its body, while Elvie pulled herself higher than its ascent with the other before lashing down with her free ribbon. The golem Without smashed to the ground with an earthshaking impact, enough to shatter the nearby windows of several buildings.

Elvie landed, facing away from Nixe. Nixe only barely noticed the Without golem’s form fading into light, into whatever being it originally was.

Her attention remained upon the Without still standing before her.

She still resembled Ribbon. But instead of the pastel yellows and lavenders, her outfit was orange and violet, her hair a fiery mane with loose ribbons dangling from her locks. Two violet ribbons hovered from her hair, like strange antennae, and the ribbons of the same shade trailing from her wrists and boots also floated as if uplifted by an invisible, unfelt air. In each hand was a ribbon baton, the streamers a dark shimmering violet.

Nixe couldn’t even bring herself to breathe. Without thinking about it, she drew one foot back, as if to start fleeing.

Elvie looked behind her. Orange irises framed by violet met Nixe’s stare, then narrowed into a glare Nixe could never imagine from Elvie. Even in their confrontation on the rooftop, even when Nixe had nearly taken her brother, Elvie had never shown an expression this furious, this…feral before.

Nixe lifted one foot to step back.

Before her sole landed upon the pavement, Elvie swung out one of her batons. The ribbon shot out at Nixe, winding around her arms and torso, before a strong pull constricted the streamer and pulled Nixe off of her feet. She crashed to the road, crying out from both the impact and the crushing around her. If Elvie pulled any tighter…

The voice that spoke was only the slightest hint familiar to Elvie’s, with an echoing tone and a harsh quality Nixe would have never imagined. “Where is the Luminon?”

Nixe couldn’t utter a word.

“Where is the Luminon?” Elvie shouted, jerking her baton, dragging Nixe along the street.

As she tumbled closer to Elvie, Nixe pictured the birdcage in her mind. “I…” Her following words spooked the white bird within into flight. “…don’t know!”

Her body lifted off of the ground, just as the white light enveloped her. For a brief moment, she didn’t feel that ribbon around her, only the fluttering energy that created her magical form and garments upon her. As the light started to fade, she felt that ribbon around her once more, the air rushing around her—

—and then the pavement against her side a split-second later, an impact forceful enough to provoke a scream. She felt cracks in the road beneath her body…maybe that golem Without had left that damage, or…

Elvie came closer, her ribbon still tight around Nixe’s body. “Where is the Luminon?” she shouted, her voice and body trembling. “Tell me now, or I’ll destroy you!”

“ _Elvie!_ ”

Past Elvie, three figures were racing closer. All three heroines came to a stop, preparing to attack—Nimbus pointed her umbrella, Machina braced her palm-blaster, and Bounce held a dodgeball tight in her hands.

Yet Nixe could see the strength in their stances wavering. Their hands trembling, their eyes wide. They had to know what had happened.

“Elvie!” Bounce shouted. “Stop! Nixe isn’t our enemy! Nixe doesn’t serve the Luminon any more!”

“She’s our friend, Elvie!” cried Machina. “Don’t hurt her!”

Nimbus’s umbrella shook like a leaf in a storm in her grip, until she finally shouted, “Elvie! There has to be some part of you still in there! You can fight this!”

Elvie looked over her shoulder to the heroines. “Are you trying to defend her, after everything she’s done?” Before any of them could answer, Elvie shouted, “Then fine!”

She yanked her baton, whipping Nixe off of the ground. Nixe screamed as she flew through the air, feeling herself impact with the other heroines before slamming into the side of a car. She landed on the pavement, lifting her head to see the other heroines rising back up…and Elvie slowly walking towards them.

“Elvie…!” Nixe cried out, struggling to stand. “They haven’t done anything wrong… I’m the one you should be hurting, not them…”

“Dove, no!” Machina said.

“If they will shield you from what you have done,” Elvie snarled, “then I will tear them down to get to you and the Luminon.”

Nimbus sprang open her umbrella, jumping in-between Elvie and Nixe. “N-no! The real Elvie would never do such a thing! We’re not going to let you—”

With a swift swipe of her baton, Elvie slashed through the canopy of Nimbus’s umbrella. The second swing caught onto the supports within, pulling it out of her grasp, letting her third rapid swipe coil around Nimbus’s body. She barely had time to cry out before Elvie whipped her off of her feet, into a building on the side of the street.

“Nimbus!” Machina cried, glancing to her friend before looking back to Elvie. She fired pulses of energy from her palm, green bolts that Elvie weaved around with ease before lashing out with both batons. The first caught onto her right arm, while the second was a heavy slash that sent her flying off of her feet.

Bounce charged forth, leaping into the air before throwing her dodgeball. Elvie dodged it with ease, and avoided the ricochet as well before snaring Bounce out of the sky and whipping her into the ground.

Nixe managed to stand, but the moment Elvie’s stare fixed upon her, her body froze up once more. This wasn’t Elvie, she told herself—it was another of the Luminon’s creations, another monster to be defeated, one that would leave behind the victim—

As Elvie started walking towards her, Nixe felt a wave of energy from elsewhere in the city, her mind in too much of a panic to pinpoint its direction. The ribbons flowing atop the head of Elvie’s Without perked up, as if she’d sensed it too. Her hands tightened around her batons.

“Another Without,” she said. “I won’t let the Luminon harm anyone else. If you cross my path again, you will get exactly what they deserve—and what _you_ deserve.”

Her ribbon batons disappeared from her hands, and Elvie’s Without dashed off, even faster than Nixe had seen Elvie or any of the other heroines run. Nixe stood in the street, staring to where she’d once been, at the damage left behind by that crystalline golem…or perhaps even Elvie’s Without.

“Nixe!” came Machina’s voice, as she ran over. “Are you okay?”

“Is everyone else…” Nixe asked.

“I’ll walk it off,” Bounce said, approaching. Nimbus grunted as she ran over too.

Neither of them said a word for a silence that was brief and yet all too long. It was Machina’s quiet squeak that finally ended it. “Elvie…she’s one of them now, isn’t she?”

“A Without…” Nimbus growled, clenching her hands.

“If we hadn’t shown up when we did…” Bounce said, slowly glancing to Nixe.

The thought sent a chill down Nixe’s spine, along with another realization. That day on the rooftop, when Nixe had stepped off…Elvie had saved her. She’d wanted to save Nixe’s life.

Her Without… Even in her magical form, the force with which she’d smashed Nixe into the street…no human could have survived that. Nixe wouldn’t have, she knew, if she hadn’t transformed…

As little as she wanted to dwell on that, it only drove home the circumstances. For all the chaos the Luminon’s prior Withouts had wrought, the Luminon had restrained them to some degree, kept them from going too far.

What they had now unleashed upon Garden City would stop at nothing, at no _one_ , to destroy what brought them the most grief and fury.

Even if it was the Luminon themselves.


	28. Berserk

Not returning to class would be suspicious, but, as Chandra argued, the circumstances were far more dire than their secrets.

When the five of them entered the main lobby of the Outsider Embassy, Mrs. Brice was already standing by the desk, as if she’d expected them to show up.

“Faye!” Machina said, hurrying towards her. “Ribbon…”

“I know.” Mrs. Brice put a hand on Machina’s shoulder. “Let’s get to my office, all of you.”

She led the way upstairs to her office, closing the door once the four heroines and Arriete had entered. Machina was the only one to take a seat, her hands between her knees; Bounce stood behind her chair, her hands resting on the back. Nimbus stood by the window, not looking away from outside for even a moment.

Mrs. Brice sat behind her head, her hands together and her expression solemn. “Several of the Outsider staff here sensed a particularly-powerful ether swell, and several went to observe. They reported back immediately when they saw…this newest Without.” The ambassador paused for a moment. “The mayor has declared a state of emergency, and all citizens have been asked to remain indoor or find shelter.”

“There has to be some way to save her!” Machina said, unable to lift her head. “I…I don’t want to fight her…”

“We’re going to have to,” Bounce said. “We haven’t been able to bring back anyone else the Luminon turned into these monsters.”

“Then she’ll still be…”

“Yes,” Mrs. Brice answered. “I don’t think it’ll be any different.”

“She knew, of course,” Bounce added. “She knew she was giving herself up for all of us, for Garden City.”

Machina shook for a moment, before she cried out, “But none of the Withouts were ever as…as vicious as she was! Why? There’s no way Elvie had that much…that much hate and anger inside of her…”

Nixe had barely moved from the back of the room. Now that silence fell over the group like a shroud, she felt like their eyes would soon set upon her, expecting answers. Demanding them.

Nimbus turned away from the window. “Why?” she screamed, glaring at Nixe with wide eyes. “What did the Luminon do to her? What do you know?”

“Dove has told us everything she knows,” Mrs. Brice said, rising from her seat. “Nimbus, please calm down.”

Nixe backed against the wall behind her, slowly shaking her head. “No…no, there was something I didn’t mention…”

“What?” asked Bounce. “Does it have to do with Elvie?”

Nodding, Nixe said, “When the Luminon first found me, they told me that they would have lifted my burden, if not for my ‘glint’. They told me later that it interfered with whatever magic the Luminon used to keep the Withouts from truly going berserk.”

“So Elvie does not have this restraint?” asked Arriete. Machina’s hands gripped the arms of her chair tightly.

“Why didn’t you say anything?” snapped Nimbus, stepping towards Nixe. “Why didn’t you tell her?”

Before Nixe could even try to force a single word out, Bounce stepped away from Machina’s chair. “Because _you_ jumped down her throat the moment she tried to speak!”

Her fists shaking, Nimbus growled, “You…you should have said something! Or did you just want to watch her throw her life away? After everything she did for you?”

There was a definite fury in Nimbus’s voice, but the higher pitch wasn’t entirely of rage. Machina pushed herself up and said, “N-Nimbus…don’t say things like that…”

“If Dove had said _anything_ ,” Nimbus said, “we wouldn’t be in this mess! H-how do we know that she isn’t playing along with us? That she isn’t still working for the Luminon?”

“Because Elvie tried to _kill_ her, Nimbus,” Bounce said, leaning towards her fellow heroine. “You think that was just an act?”

Nimbus continued to shudder, until she turned back towards the window, her arms crossed. “D-damn it! Why…why didn’t you…”

Nixe closed her eyes. Nimbus was right. She should have spoken up, should have mustered the courage to tell Elvie the truth about the Luminon’s intentions. She hadn’t, and now who knew what Elvie’s Without was doing now…

She glanced to the others. Arriete remained in the other corner, her ears drooped. Machina had returned to seat, leaning upon her knees; Bounce’s attention was upon her. Mrs. Brice sat quietly, her eyes closed, as if in contemplation.

Nixe closed her eyes for a moment, mustering her resolve. She wouldn’t make the same mistake twice. “Nimbus, please listen.” The heroine in the rain-gear didn’t react to her voice. “You’re right, I should have told Elvie. And…”

The time she’d spent with Elvie and Miri flashed back into her mind, coupled with how Parker had sulked off after each time they’d crossed paths. “…Nimbus, I can’t blame you for disliking me. For hating me. I made a terrible choice, I hurt a lot of innocent people. I admit to that…and when the time comes, I’ll face whatever punishment I deserve for it.”

She paused only to take a deep breath. “But…right now, what matters most to _all_ of us is Elvie. Because I’m scared for her. Just as scared as you are.”

Nimbus flinched, and for a moment Nixe thought she would spin around and let out another outburst. Once she was sure Nimbus wasn’t going to interrupt, Nixe continued. “There’s nothing I want more than to save Elvie. To stop what the Luminon has turned her into, and get her back for good. I don’t want to ask you to like me…” She bowed her head for a moment. “I don’t deserve that. But please, Nimbus…let’s work together, to save Elvie. To save Garden City. And everyone the Luminon and I have hurt.”

As the last word left Nixe’s throat, anxiety crept into her heart. Maybe it was too late to earn Nimbus’s trust. Maybe she’d chosen the wrong words, had said something that would infuriate the heroine. With each passing second, Nixe dreaded more that speaking up had been the wrong thing to do.

Finally, Nimbus turned around. There wasn’t anger in her eyes any longer, though a weariness lingered in her gaze. “No…no, you’re right, Dove,” she said, the faintest hint of a smile crossing her face—to Nixe’s surprise. She approached closer to the others and said. “We have to stop her first. That’s…what we have to do.”

Bounce nodded. “That being isn’t our Elvie. Elvie would never do anything she’s done so far.”

“But what then?” asked Machina. “How do we get her back?”

Mrs. Brice opened her laptop. “Our studies here have been investigating these portals into the Luminon’s realm, but we have no idea how they are created or how to utilize them ourselves. I’d warned the heroines not to try to follow the Luminon’s victims through—they can seal in an instant, before another can get through as well.”

Nixe lowered her head. “If only I still had the powers to create portals to Solis…”

“Perhaps you do.”

Looking to Faye, Nixe said, “W-what? No, the Luminon took that power away from me.”

“Magic may change, but in my experience, it’s just like riding a bike—its powers are something you simply don’t forget. It may be that you lack the magical strength to create a portal there, but perhaps with the help of the other heroines…”

“We shall do it!” Arriete immediately answered. “Let us confront the Luminon!”

“We have to try,” Bounce said. “We’ll never win if we don’t even put in the effort!”

“Then how do we do it?” asked Nimbus. “What if we aren’t strong enough, even toge—”

What felt like a smothering gale of warmth slid over Nixe’s body, and given the cry of surprise from Bounce and the jolt that brought Machina to her feet, the others sensed it as well. That sensation registered in Nixe’s mind before even the brilliant light shining through the office window, as if the sun had become twice as bright.

“What is that?” Machina shouted, as everyone hurried towards the window.

When Nixe glanced outside, all she saw in the sky was brilliant white, as if the heavens had turned to pure luminous cloud. Just like the portals of the Luminon…

“Enlightenment…?” Nixe uttered. Had this been what the Luminon meant?

“What do you mean?” asked Bounce.

“The Luminon was planning something to purge the darkness from everyone in the city,” Nixe said. Had Elvie somehow given the Luminon the means to carry out this plan?

“Do you feel that?” asked Nimbus. “Like flashes of lightning in the heart of a hurricane…”

When Nixe tried to sense it, she could. Machina shouted it out first. “More Withouts are awakening!”

“All of you,” Mrs. Brice said aloud, “get out there. Find Elvie, before she does anything drastic. I don’t know what is going on, but if this is the culmination of the Luminon’s plans, then perhaps now will be your best chance to enter into their realm.”

“We have to try!” shouted Bounce. “Let’s go, girls!”

“Yes!” Machina answered.

As they turned to Mrs. Brice, the ambassador said, “I have some calls to make. I’ll see what I can do to help you. Now go!”

The four heroines and the almiran charged out of the office, down the staircase and into the street. Swirling energies filled the streets, weaving their way between—if not through—buildings from deeper within the city.

“It must be strongest at the heart of Garden City!” Machina said as they ran into the street.

Before they reached the source of those energies, a large figure soared around a building, swooping down towards the heroines with countless wings frantically flapping. “Look out!” Bounce cried, before one of her aura-wreathed dodgeballs sent the Without crashing to the ground.

They kept running, even as other Withouts emerged to attack. Were these monsters acting of their own free will, Nixe wondered, glancing back at the several on their tail—or was the Luminon trying to slow them down?

The energies from the cloud of light above Garden City seemed to grow strongest in the center of a business park, a large concrete square with four towering buildings at the corners. Several Withouts were gathered here, with some even attacking each other to a symphony of screeches and roars.

“They are upon us!” Arriete shouted.

Nixe turned, just in time to swing her sword and release a blat of wind that scattered a barrage of razor feathers. She charged at the bird-like Without that had let loose those feathers, striking it with her blade before unleashing an arc of light from her sword that sent it crashing to the ground.

“There’s too many of them!” Machina shouted, trying to hold off three feral-looking Withouts with rapid-fire energy pulses from her palm.

With a roar, Nimbus hurled her umbrella at the ground before the three. It pierced into the concrete before a surge of lightning struck it from above, blasting the three Withouts back. Her umbrella rematerialized in her hands, just in time to spread it open and shield herself from the flailing strike of a boar-headed beast. Nixe charged her sword with ether—

Something caught her other wrist, and with a scream, she felt herself being pulled away. Another translucent blue tendril seized her arm, dragging her closer to the jellyfish-like Without that stood at the edge of the park. Nixe tried to swing her sword at the tendrils, but a third caught her wrist with ease.

Before she could cry out for help, something glowing struck the Without from the side. The projectile burst into white light with a pinkish tint, scattering…petals through the air?

A woman ran over to Nixe. “Are you alright?” she asked, reaching down to grab Nixe’s arm.

Nixe looked up to the woman. Her attire was strange enough—a red-and-pink dress, with a plaid apron. But it was the red hair speckled with gold, with a single leaf protruding from atop her head, and the green leaf-like mask around her eyes that made Nixe immediately realize who this was. “You’re…”

She couldn’t finish her gasping words, but the heroine nodded. The heroine pulled Nixe to her feet before reaching into her apron, pulling out something that she clutched in her hand before flinging it at another Without.

The other heroines of her own generation continued to fight, with Machina and Bounce shooting at larger foes from a distance and Nimbus dashing in closer to parry attacks with her umbrella and keep them at bay with swirling gusts of wind. Nixe gripped her sword tight and charged into the fray, casting slashes of light at Withouts that threatened to get close to the others.

Before she could take a swing at one centaur-like Without that loomed over her, something flew at them from the side, impacting with a powerful pulse of energy that flung both the Without and whatever had struck them back. While the Without crashed to the ground, the other figure landed steady on their feet. The tan costume, styled like fur, the mask she wore and the large pointed ears atop her head…she was another of the heroines from five years ago, then! The ones who’d stopped the first Outsider invasion…

They weren’t the only ones to join. She spotted avalerions, not Withouts but regular bird-people, diving down from the skies to join the battle. Arcs of magic fired from their claws and wreathed their talons as they lashed out at the Withouts. Normal jellyfish-Outsiders conjured tides to bombard waves of Withouts. Duneyrr stampeded through with ethereal weapons and nets. Even a butterfly-winged Outsider—the same orange-winged one that had been among the avalerions that night—had appeared from somewhere.

Nixe looked around, fending off Withouts that drew near her or their allies. But where was—

Just as she struck a scaled Without that had pounced on Arriete with a crescent of glowing wind from her blade, Nixe spotted another figure entering the business park. A humanoid figure, clad in orange and violet.

A familiar voice cried out from the chaos, “Do not confront that Without!”

That wasn’t a warning Nixe would acknowledge, and she started running for Elvie’s Without. Elvie noticed her, her glare meeting Nixe’s gaze for a moment before she dashed away.

“After her!” shouted Nimbus, running to Nixe’s side.

Nixe glanced back, to many unconscious forms lying among the remaining Withouts and the Outsiders and heroines who fought them. The apron-clad heroine looked to them and said, “Go! We’ll hold off these monsters!”

Bounce and Machina reached them, and the four dashed off after Elvie. The Without swung her ribbon baton at a nearby streetlight, flinging herself onto a low rooftop. “We have to get up there!” Machina shouted.

They ran into a nearby alley, leaping up to a fire escape and hurrying one-by-one up to the roof. When Nixe looked back to the others, she noticed Arriete wasn’t there—had the almiran been unable to follow?

“There!” Bounce shouted. Nixe looked to where she pointed, to the Without leaping from rooftop to rooftop, springing from lower buildings to higher ones.

Without a second thought, Nixe started running. Mustering all of her strength, she leaped into the air towards the next building, managing to clear the height gap and land on her feet. Without stopping, she turned to her right, jumping for the next. The other heroines’ footsteps followed behind her, crunching through the snow and landing with heavy thuds.

The higher they went, the closer the cloud of light above came. Had it been steadily descending upon the city all along? Ahead, Elvie’s Without sprang from the edge of a building overlooking the business park, flinging herself into the heart of the blinding white cloud.

As Nixe jumped onto the building Elvie had thrown herself into the cloud from, a dark flash filled the cloud. It contracted, drawing away from the rooftop. “No!” Nixe shouted, waiting until she neared the edge to jump as high as she could, hoping she could enter that cloud after Elvie.

But she didn’t jump anywhere near as high as Elvie had, and the cloud of light was already too far away. She soared up, then gravity overcame her momentum and she started to fall.

Nixe looked down, and almost screamed. But a thought crossed her mind, and she pointed her sword downward. A twister of wind burst from the blade, striking the ground and slowing her descent just a little. She still tumbled when she landed upon the road, though the fall probably would have hurt a lot more otherwise…or if she had been an ordinary human.

Springing to her feet, Nixe glanced up to see Nimbus gliding down with her umbrella, Machina hanging from her free hand and Bounce dangling from Machina’s other hand. The chain of heroines broke near the ground, all three managing to land on their feet. “Are you alright, Dove?” Nimbus asked.

“I’m fine,” Nixe said, glancing up to the sky. Yet another surge of dark rippled through the cloud of light, drawing it further away.

“We have to try what Faye said,” Machina said. “Nixe, let’s combine our power! Do whatever you have to do to create a portal into the Luminon’s realm!”

“How do we do that?” asked Nixe.

Bounce closed her eyes and held out her hands. “I don’t know, but…everyone, just focus your power!”

How did Nixe always do it? How did she usually charge her magic? “Into my sword!” she said, holding the blade outward.

Bounce and Machina both placed one hand on the hilt, above Nixe’s; Bounce’s glowed with the red aura that enveloped her dodgeballs, while Machina’s shone with the green light from her palm-blaster. Nimbus rested the tip of her umbrella upon the point of the sword, sending a current of air crackling with lightning around the length of the blade.

Nixe’s arm trembled with the growing ether within the blade. It began to glow with brilliance, as it had when she’d possessed the Luminon’s power. Was it enough, though?

She drew the sword back, then stepped away from the heroines. Focusing as much of her own magical energy into her sword, Nixe turned around, then slashed through the air. A pulse of light released from her blade as it left a tear before them, into a swirling vortex of light.

Nixe glanced to her fellow heroines, then to the Outsiders and those other two heroines fighting the last of the Withouts. Would more come in time, converge upon this place like the others?

As she turned around, Machina called out, “Arriete!”

The almiran had returned, running down the street towards them. “Valiant Glints…” she said, coming to a stop. “Go! Do not let me hold you back.”

“Come on, Arriete!” Bounce shouted.

“You’re not going to hold us back at all!” Nimbus said. “Now let’s go!”

Nixe recalled the times she’d mocked the almiran’s weakness. Arriete had barely been able to defend herself against the Withouts just now. Yet Nixe knew she would be no less concerned about Elvie than the rest of them. “Arriete,” she said, “please come with us! I know you’ll help us save Elvie and stop the Luminon!”

The almiran stared for several moments longer, then sprinted to them. Nixe faced the portal once more, taking a deep breath. “Follow me, quickly!” she cried, hoping the portal wouldn’t close right behind her before the others could join her.

Nixe threw herself forward, into the vortex of light, and Earth’s gravity vanished from her body as she soared into Solis once more.


	29. Judgement

As they soared through the vortex of light, Nixe recalled the idyllic plains of Solis, the peaceful and tranquil landscapes within. The “purified” spirits that resided there, freed of the “darkness” within them…how many now filled Solis? Had it been their energy together that had allowed the Luminon to carry out their enlightenment?

Had Elvie been the tipping point?

And were those spirits now in peril from Elvie’s Without?

She emerged from the portal, touching down not in the golden grass she recalled, but withered, bronzing stalks. The realm seemed to refuse to come into focus, but Nixe realized that it was some kind of greyish haze, blurring out what would have been the once-dazzling expanses.

“This is the Luminon’s realm?” asked Machina behind her.

“Not quite what I expected…” Bounce said.

The grey haze pulsed with dark. With a strange buzz-like sound, the ground before them split open into a black-glowing fissure that emitted that grey haze.

Cries echoed from behind Nixe. “W-what’s going on?” Nixe herself shouted.

“How are we supposed to know?” Nimbus replied. “Let’s just find Elvie!”

The other heroines were first to start off, though Nixe was only a step behind. They leaped over the fissure, and others that had already formed or broke open as they advanced through this place. Nixe tried to sense anything in here, yet that haze seemed to block out her magical senses as well as it obscured her vision. What was happening? Had Elvie found her way to the Luminon already?

From the fog to her right came a sharp cry. The others stopped as well, with Arriete shouting, “That way!”

After only a second of running, Nixe spotted a faint glowing silhouette through the haze, seemingly standing still—before moving quickly deeper into the fog, out of view. She ran faster, until she saw the figure once more, until its body became visible in the haze.

As Nixe approached the Luminon, their body sprawled upon the ground, a band of warmth tightened around her midsection. Before she could even look to find its source, it pulled her away from the Luminon, whipping her to the ground.

Another band coiled around her neck, yanking Nixe upwards. Under her stifled grunt of pain, she heard Machina shout, “Elvie!”

The Without held Nixe before her, those orange irises almost like fire in the void of her eyes. Her expression was contorted into a burning rage, her teeth gritting as she pulled the ribbon around Nixe’s throat tighter. It was painful, yet Nixe didn’t feel herself suffocating.

“Of course you have come to protect her,” Elvie’s Without growled. “Then you can both die here together!”

“Elvie, no!” Bounce shouted. “She’s not with the Luminon! She’s on our side!”

“Do you seriously trust her?” barked the Without. As Elvie’s glare shifted away from Nixe, Nixe summoned her sword in her hand.

“Yes, we trust her!” Machina said, taking aim with her palm-blaster. “Because the _real_ you trusted her!”

Scoffing, Elvie’s Without replied, “Did I? I knew she would betray us. I expected it all along. But for you as well to defend her, to interfere with me stopping the Luminon once and for all…” The hand that held one of Elvie’s batons began to tremble, jerking on the ribbon wrapped around Nixe’s neck. “Then I’ll have to destroy all of you as well!”

Nixe swung her sword upward between the two of them, slashing through the ribbon. What remained around her neck dissipated into light, and she sprang back. But before she could lower her sword to defend, Elvie lashed out with her other ribbon. What looked like a streaming band of light felt like a white-hot blade slashing through her chest, even though it left no mark, prompting a scream from Nixe as it flung her off of her feet.

She tumbled along the grass, rolling onto her knees into a position she could spring up from. Elvie dashed at the other heroines, who tried to dodge away from her flailing ribbons. She struck away Machina, then caught Arriete and flung the almiran at Bounce. Arriete, rather than impacting with the heroine, flickered through the air and appeared on the other side of Bounce as she jumped into the air, preparing to dive-throw a dodgeball.

Elvie was faster, and whipped out both ribbons at Bounce. Just as the ribbons caught Bounce’s arms, Nimbus hurled her closed umbrella. The bolt of lightning it became surged into Elvie’s side, making her flinch. But she was still able to uncurl one of her ribbons from Bounce and whip it around at Nimbus. With the two heroines caught, she swung them both into the air, about to smash them into each other—

Nixe quickly charged her blade, then swung her sword with a high scream, unleashing an arc of light that struck Elvie’s Without in the back. The attack was enough to throw off her aim, resulting in Nimbus and Bounce missing each other but still being flung far enough that they vanished into the haze.

Just as Nixe raised her sword before her, Elvie’s Without turned and lunged at her. Nixe desperately parried the two ribbons, their length keeping her from getting close enough to counter-attack. Green bolts of energy flew past Elvie, fired from Machina’s blaster, yet even their impacts didn’t stun Elvie enough for Nixe to strike.

As Elvie swung both batons from each side, Nixe jumped up, narrowly avoiding both bands of violet. When she landed, Elvie began to thrash more wildly, as if infuriated by Nixe’s defense.

…or now, by her seeming incorporeality. Her frantic swings soon eroded through the image of Nixe that had appeared before her, yet she didn’t seem to realize the real Nixe was standing just next to her.

At least, until Nixe charged her blade once more. Then Elvie’s Without spun towards her, her ribbons swinging.

The beam of green energy that struck Elvie from behind did stun her for long enough for Nixe to unleash another blast of light. This launched Elvie’s Without off of her feet—and yanked the ribbon that had caught Nixe’s ankle, whipping Nixe too onto her back.

When Nixe managed to push herself up, Elvie was sprinting at Machina, who had raised her arm and a holographic shield. Just as Elvie swung her ribbons up, a dodgeball flew at her as Bounce emerged from the haze. Elvie’s Without stepped to the side to avoid it, sending the ball straight at Machina—who caught it, then whipped it at Elvie, striking her in the face. As Machina cried out an apology, Bounce jumped into the air, caught her ball again, then spiked it down at Elvie just as a ribbon whipped her out of the air.

With a snap of her ribbon behind her, Elvie’s Without struck down Machina, then she lunged at Nixe once more. Blade and ribbon clashed once more—until one of the ribbons caught Nixe’s sword, yanking it out of her hand, while the other swung down at her.

Instead of striking Nixe, the ribbon clashed against Nimbus’s umbrella. Nixe’s eyes widened for a moment, and she recalled her sword to her hand as Nimbus deflected several more of Elvie’s attacks. Before Nixe had the chance to attack, _another_ Nixe swung at Elvie from the other side. With a single stroke of her ribbons, Elvie slashed through the illusion.

This trick—Arriete’s trick—gave Nixe and Nimbus just enough time to exchange glances, then point their weapons at Elvie’s Without. From Nimbus’s spinning umbrella and Nixe’s blade came twisters of wind that struck Elvie together, flinging her deep into the haze.

The other heroines hurried closer, but Nixe looked over to the Luminon, laying on the ground. Would Elvie—

She dashed over, just in time for her sword to deflect the ribbons that lashed out at her. The narrowed eyes of Elvie’s Without met Nixe’s. “Why?” she screamed. “Why do you defend them, after everything they’ve done?”

Wouldn’t Elvie’s fellow heroines have thought the same about Nixe herself once? “Because the real Elvie wouldn’t want this!” Nixe shouted. “Not this way!”

To her left, Nixe sensed a surge of ether, as if the other heroines were preparing to strike in unison. She had to hold Elvie off from them, had to make this count…

One violet ribbon coiled around Nixe’s blade, but she held tight as it tried to jerk her sword away. As Elvie swung her second ribbon at Nixe, Nixe slashed out in an arc—but not at Elvie’s Without.

Her blade slashed through both of Elvie’s ribbons, near the base of the baton, severing them and turning the lengths into glimmering light that faded away.

That ether to her left swelled, and she turned her head to see Bounce leap into the air. A thick crimson aura enveloped the dodgeball in her hands. With a high shout, she flung the ball as hard as she could.

Nimbus jumped up next, pointing her closed umbrella. As it snapped open, it released a burst of wind and lightning, increasing the ball’s speed and wreathing it in crackling electricity.

Last came Machina, boosted into the air with her heel-jets. The glowing green in her palm discharged into a bolt that merged with the dodgeball like the tail of a comet.

As it flew through the air. Arriete dashed out too, throwing her hands forward. What was one bolt became a myriad of identical bolts, spiralling around each other, all converging towards Elvie’s Without.

Elvie stepped aside, even into the path of several of the false bolts that passed through her body harmlessly.

The real combined projectile struck the ground past Elvie—then sprang back directly towards Elvie from behind.

Filling her blade with ether, Nixe waited until the ball neared her, then swung her sword out. The blade grazed the dodgeball, imbuing it with her own shining white light as the brilliant bolt flew at Elvie.

The Without glanced over her shoulder, her eyes widening with fury.

Even though Nixe knew it wasn’t truly Elvie, her stomach twisted at the scream that followed. She glanced away from the blinding explosion of light from their combined attack.

When she looked back, the burst of energy had faded, leaving the Without on her side, struggling to push herself up. Nixe tightened her grip on her sword, praying she wouldn’t need to strike a finishing blow…

With one last shudder, Elvie’s Without slumped to the ground, and white light slowly overtook her form.

Before her transformation back had even finished, Arriete cried, “Elvie!” and started running towards her. Bounce, Machna, and Nimbus were close behind, each of them kneeling next to her as the light faded away, leaving a teenage human girl lying in the withered, faded grass.

“Elvie!” Nimbus shouted. “Elvie…Elvie’s…”

As Nixe started towards them, she caught movement out of the corner of her eye. Her sword rose before her out of instinct, but when she saw the figure’s staggering movements, her stance faltered.

The Luminon slowly approached, almost limping towards them. Though a hint of the brilliant aura that had once surrounded them remained, it was a mere shadow of the being Nixe recalled from their previous encounters. If the Luminon had once been a godly figure, this was them brought down to mere mortality…or perhaps simple immortality.

When they spoke, their voice no longer echoed throughout Solis. “So you have come before me at last, in this place.”

Spinning to her feet, Arriete screamed, “You monster!”

“Give Elvie back!” Nimbus shouted, pointing her umbrella at the Luminon. “Give her back and _everyone_ you’ve taken!”

The Luminon’s glowing eyes closed briefly. “Your friend’s unleashed fury has left me weak. There is little I can do to stop you all from finishing what she has started.”

Machina braced her right arm, but her aim still shook. “It…it was _you_ who made Elvie into that monster! You did that to her!”

“I only brought to the forefront her guiding desires and emotions. The darkness that all mortals succumb to.”

“Who are you to talk about darkness,” Bounce snarled, a dodgeball forming in her hands, “after everything you’ve done to Garden City?”

The Luminon remained silent for a few seconds, before falling to their knees. “Then it is time for you to carry out your judgement. I am defenseless before you. It is time to end this.”

Though Nixe’s grip on her sword tightened, she didn’t lift her blade to attack, or even focus her magic. As she glanced to the other heroines and Arriete, all of them stood ready to strike…and none of them carried forward with such intent.

Lifting their head, the Luminon said, “Why do you hesitate now, when you have come so far?”

Though each of them had borne furious expressions at first, Nixe watched as her fellow heroines and Arriete’s faces slowly softened.

She turned back to the Luminon, then said, “None of us want to kill you.”

“Why?” asked the being before Nixe. “After all I have done to your world, to your people? To your friend?”

Machina’s voice burst out. “W-why did you do it? Why did you take Elvie?”

The Luminon bowed their head, and Nixe understood the reason for their hesitation. “It _was_ because of me, wasn’t it? Because I’d reconciled with my mother?”

Without lifting their head, the Luminon said, “When I sensed the burden in your heart being lifted, I longed to remind you that all mortals bear darkness in their hearts. Even the one who showed you mercy and kindness after witnessing the darkness in _your_ heart.”

“What you turned Elvie into…” Bounce said, “that wasn’t Elvie! Elvie would never do any of the things your monster did!”

“It is what lingered in her heart. Even in her supposed forgiveness, your friend could not truly cast aside her hatred and anger. Even for the one that now stands with you.”

As Nixe glanced away, Nimbus spoke up. “If Nixe hadn’t calmed me down, we wouldn’t have gotten here to save your neck. I know what’s she done—but I trust her now.”

“We may have been enemies once,” Arriete said, “but Elvie has always wanted Nixe to join us, despite our many battles! She believed in Nixe!”

“But of course you remember that moment,” the Luminon said, “when that anger emerged of her own volition. When she could not restrain her darkness.”

Of course Nixe did. It’d left Nixe believing that Elvie had lost all hope in her. “And after all of that, she still saved my life. She still welcomed me with open arms. She still tried her best to help me. Even if she hated what I’d done, she chose kindness. She _chose_ to be my friend.”

“It does not change what dwelled in her heart. What lies in the hearts of all mortals, and even those you stand with now. What lies in your heart.”

“I know,” Nixe said, placing a hand over her chest. “I believed that all I was doing would be worth it in the end. I convinced myself that all the pain and suffering I’d wrought was for the greater good. All because of the hurt I’d suffered myself that had convinced me that people were flawed, that they could never overcome their failings.”

The Luminon’s eyes met hers.

“But I’ve seen people change,” Nixe continued. “I’ve seen them make mistakes, and accept them, and become better people for it. I’ve seen them rise above their failings. Maybe there is some darkness in all of us, but we can be better than it. And when we falter, we can apologize for it, make amends for what we’ve done.”

“I’ve had plenty of teammates I haven’t gotten along with,” Bounce said, “but we still come together and have fun on the court.”

“There were people who’d made fun of my arm when I was younger,” Machina said. “But when they got older, they apologized for the things they’d said.”

“I know I wanted to blame Dove for what’d happened to Elvie,” Nimbus said. “But even after how I treated her, she wanted us to get along, to work together, for Elvie’s sake.”

“Maybe people are scared now because of what you have done,” Arriete said, “but I believe more humans will come to accept Outsiders in time!”

The Luminon gazed to each of them as they spoke. When their eyes returned to Nixe, she spoke once more. “They believed in me. Elvie believed in me. And I believe in you, Luminon. I believe you can see how all of this is wrong, that you can give back everyone you’ve taken away. I know you can do the right thing.” She walked forward, extending a hand towards the Luminon. “Please.”

Those glowing eyes shifted from Nixe’s face to her outstretched arm. Then they shut tight. “How could I have let myself go so astray? How might the one I cherished look upon all I’ve done? How would they forgive me, as those with you have?”

“Would you have forgiven _them_?”

The Luminon’s eyes slowly opened. Though they did not take Nixe’s hand, they rose to their feet.

Taking a step back, the Luminon spread out their wings and their arms. Beads of light emerged from the fog all around them, countless glowing ethereal orbs that surrounded them. Lifting their hands, the Luminon cast them all into the sky, disappearing into the golden void like a flock of birds taking flight.

“Is that…everyone?” asked Nimbus.

“Yes.” The Luminon lowered their arms, their stance faltering. “I have little strength left to sustain this realm. I shall use it to send you back to your world.”

Nixe’s stomach jumped. Before she could speak, Machina said, “You’re… Is this place going to cease to exist?”

“It will, and I may with it,” the Luminon answered. “If I do not, then…I shall reflect upon all I have done. And upon your light, bearers of the Glints.”

The familiar energy of a portal between Solis and the human world slowly formed around them. Nixe looked to the Luminon and said, “Thank you, Luminon.”

“I am undeserving of your gratitude,” the Luminon replied. “But thank you, Nixe.”

She bowed her head. She could have said just the same.

The once-shining realm around them slowly blurred into whirling colours, fading away into the white vortex. Nixe felt herself slowly start to plummet, falling for what felt like an eternity.

Her feet touched gently down upon solid ground, the white auras fading away into a vista of buildings and concrete all around. The other heroines and Arriete stood with her, and all around in the business park they’d departed from were the many Outsiders and the two older heroines who’d held off the Withouts.

A glowing light drifted down from the sky, descending into a motionless human woman near Nixe. As Nixe watched, other white orbs glided down into others, human and Outsider. The woman was the first to open her eyes, grunting softly and looking around in confusion.

One by one, humans and Outsiders that had once been Withouts started to push themselves up. The Outsiders and heroines who’d fought against the Withouts checked on these people; the one in an apron even handed out apples to a few people.

As Nixe looked around, one light drifted down among their group. Her eyes, along with the others’, lowered to the body the light seeped into.

A few seconds later, Elvie’s eyes slowly opened.

“ _Elvie!_ ” Nimbus shouted, dropping to her knees. Before Elvie had a chance to even try to stand, Nimbus had pried her off of the ground and into a tight hug, one that Machina and Bounce found their way into.

“Elvie, you’re back!” Machina said, squeezing her friend tight.

Elvie blinked a few times, as if she’d just awoken from a long sleep. A small smile formed upon her lips. “It’s…it’s over, isn’t it?”

“Yep,” Bounce said, grinning. “We did it. Everyone’s coming back.”

Nixe lifted her head to the sky. Even as more of the former Withouts around them revived, several of those glowing lights spread out to elsewhere in the city. She hoped that there hadn’t been Withouts causing chaos elsewhere, that those were simply people who had yet to awaken.

“Nixe…”

She looked down to Elvie, who was rising to her feet with the help of her friends. “Elvie…”

Once she was upright, Elvie threw her arms around Nixe. “I knew you girls would do it.” A chuckle left her, the sort of shudder that suggested she would soon start to tear up. “It’s over…it’s finally over…”

Nixe lifted her arms around Elvie, but just as they were about to embrace her, they slowly lowered away. Elvie lifted her head away from Nixe’s shoulder, staring at her. “Nixe…?”

Behind Elvie, among the crowd of former Withouts, were the Outsiders who’d joined the fray. The two heroines who’d saved the world previously. And that orange-winged butterfly-Outsider who’d been there on that night. Though some continued to tend to those rising from the ground, many eyes were upon the heroines.

Many eyes were upon Nixe herself.

She smiled, for she knew what Elvie said was true. It was over. They’d brought the Luminon’s plot to an end, they’d brought back everyone who’d been taken by them. No more would the Withouts endanger anyone.

It was over, for the heroines, for the people for the Garden City.

But it wasn’t over for her.


	30. Chance

When the final bell of the day rang, Nixe pulled herself away from her desk and out of the classroom. That first month at Eden High before that Outsider had gone berserk seemed like a different life entirely, and so did the several months at Amaryllis High School. She almost felt lost in the half-familiar hallways, even though this was the second week after Eden High’s reopening.

Though almost all of the students had returned, none of the Outsiders who had briefly studied among them did. Though Mayor Pherson had spoken at length about how Outsiders had helped protect the city from the swarm of Withouts, Nixe had heard several times on the news about increased distrust towards them ever since the start of what was now deemed the Luminon Crisis. Even now, thinking about it and the Outsider students’ absence sent a pang of guilt through Nixe’s stomach.

She found her way to her locker. Fortunately, she only had a little bit of homework tonight; she could leave most of her textbooks in the locker. Sliding her lock into place, Nixe pulled her backpack over her shoulder and turned around—

—to Miri, standing there with a small smile and her hands together at her waist. “Hey, Nixe!” she said.

A lump formed in Nixe’s throat. “H-hey,” she said, glancing away from Miri.

“I tried to get a hold of you,” she said, “but you haven’t been answering my messages.”

“Oh yeah…sorry.” Nixe couldn’t recall the last time she’d chatted over that app that remained on her tablet. Even when she sat with the two at lunch, she was usually completely silent.

Miri’s smile grew a touch, as if she was trying to be more inviting. “Anyway, Elvie’s inviting the girls over to her place tonight, and she was really hoping you’d be there this time. Would you be able to come over?”

Though her stomach twisted at the thought, the least she could do now, after everything, was to agree. “Alright,” she said. “I’ll see you tonight, then.”

But Miri didn’t walk away, and Nixe couldn’t quite bring herself to either. “How’s everything been?” Miri asked. Her voice lowering, she added, “Is your mom doing fine?”

Nixe closed her eyes. “She…relapsed, actually.”

“Oh, Nixe…” This time, Nixe almost expected the hug that followed. “I’m sorry to hear that.”

“She’s going to check back into treatment,” Nixe continued, as Miri let go of her. “But she promised to try her best to not slip this time.”

“It’s never easy overcoming an addiction.”

“Yeah. But she’s apologized to me about it, and I know she feels terrible about it. She’s my mom, and I’ll be with her as much as I can.”

Nixe started to walk away from her locker, and Miri stayed by her side. “What about your dad? What sort of arrangement have your parents made?”

“He’s moved positions to another office, away from Garden City. I’m going to stay with him during the summer, visit during weeks off, then the rest of the year I’ll be with Mom. Both of them agreed to that.” Slowing to sigh for a moment, Nixe said, “I’m sure I’ll be worrying about Mom the entire time, but her friends at therapy are going to keep checking in on her.”

“It’s good that they didn’t have any problems with it.”

Nixe nodded. She couldn’t help but to think about all she’d done, having wanted for them to be together.

Neither said a word until they stepped outside, into the cool spring air. Two months after the end of the Luminon Crisis, Garden City was again a sparkling city, or at least it was on days when spring showers didn’t drown out the sun with gloomy clouds.

“I’ll see you at Elvie’s around six, okay?” Miri said.

“Yes,” Nixe replied.

Miri took Nixe’s right hand first with her left, then closed her right hand around it. “I’m always glad to hear from you, Nixe.”

Part of Nixe wished she didn’t. That there wasn’t still that attachment between her and the other girls. It was over for them, even if it wasn’t quite for her.

Yet she looked to Miri with a smile on her face, and perhaps a hint of warmth in her cheeks. Even when things weren’t the best, to have someone to lean upon… “Thank you, Miri. I’ll see you tonight.”

Miri let go of her hand, and the two headed their separate ways.

= ~ = ~ = ~ = ~ =

The thought of seeing the others in-person again was like a weight upon her wings as Nixe headed down the street. Rather than the few meetings they had after it was all over, before Nixe had started turning down their invitations, she thought back to their voices and faces during that crisis. The fury they’d shown her as enemies, the reluctance as allies… She’d been positive that Parker still hated her guts the entire time, and though Parker’s mom had recovered just like everyone else, she couldn’t imagine it hadn’t still weighed on Parker’s mind every time she’d seen Nixe.

Though she paused for a moment at the front door, Nixe gathered her nerves and knocked.

A mere second later, Elvie opened the door. “Hey, Nixe!” she said. “Glad you could make it.”

Nixe stepped inside, taking off her shoes while Elvie patiently waited. Judging from the lack of other shoes, the rest of Elvie’s family were out. Elvie herself was wearing a pink-tinted sweater and a white skirt, and ribbons of various colours tied around her wrists and woven through her hair.

“I’m sorry I didn’t come see you myself,” Elvie said, her hands together and twitching as if she was nervous. “I was a bit busy after school.”

“It’s okay,” Nixe said. That Elvie still considered her enough of a friend to invite her over, even as Nixe tried to drift away from them…

“Come on, let’s grab something to snack on in the kitchen first,” Elvie said, taking Nixe by the wrist with a big smile. Nixe raised an eyebrow as she followed—what was going on—

Elvie flicked on the kitchen light switch.

“ _Surprise!_ ”

Nixe’s heart jumped in her chest. Miri, Chandra, Parker, and Arriete stood gathered around the kitchen table, where a white-frosted cake sat. A few balloons floated on long ribbons tied to chairs, resting near the ceiling.

This…this was…

“Come on,” Chandra said, grinning. “We’ve been waiting for cake!”

Her tongue felt like lead in her mouth. “I…I…”

“I know your birthday is tomorrow,” Elvie said, “but nonetheless…”

“ _Happy birthday!_ ” all the girls gathered in the room exclaimed together.

Nixe’s pulse still pounded. She glanced around, unsure of what to say, what even to feel.

That was when she realized there was another girl present, one standing by the refrigerator with a small smile. Large leaves hung from her head, with one partly-obscuring her verdant-skinned face. Though the black blouse and pants she wore were fairly-plain human fashion, most peculiar was the pink ribbon wrapped around one of the vines that hung in clusters from her sleeves.

It wasn’t merely her appearance that struck Nixe. It was the certainty of having seen other Outsiders like her before, perhaps even her. Could she have been…?

“E-e…everyone…” Nixe stammered, trying to collect herself. What if she started getting emotional, started tearing up? “H-how did you all know…”

“You had your birthday in your profile on our chat app,” Miri said, as Elvie took out several plates from the cupboards. “Parker noticed it, and suggested we do something for your birthday.”

“P-Parker?” Once again her heart fluttered. Parker, of all of them?

Shrugging and smiling, Parker said, “Well, I hadn’t seen you around often or heard from you, so when I noticed it was going to be your birthday soon, I mentioned it to the other girls.”

For Parker to have wanted to do this for her… It was such a contrast to the Nimbus who hadn’t wanted to speak a word to Dove. Surely there remained even a hint of bitterness…or perhaps Parker was letting that remain in the past, and trying to start anew with Nixe.

“We were trying to figure out anything special we could do,” Bounce said. “Miri suggested we watch a bunch of her old movies, but I was thinking, if you’re into it…the seven of us could go out bowling?”

“Bowling?” That didn’t sound like a bad time at all. “S-sure, but…”

“I think we’ve waited long enough for the cake,” Elvie said, beaming as she cut the first slice. “Here you go, Nixe!”

Nixe stared at the cake. Within the thick and smooth white icing was soft, moist chocolate cake. It looked absolutely delicious, and her stomach begged her to enjoy it. Yet…

“Oh!” Elvie said, while handing the third plate to Chandra. “I forgot to introduce you!” She walked over to the plant-girl Outsider by the fridge. “Nixe, this is Erys. She’s an Outsider I’ve known for a while. Actually, she helped me bake the cake, so I figured she deserved a slice.”

“Hello,” said Erys, in a soft and timid voice.

“Hey,” Nixe replied, smiling. Hadn’t Elvie mentioned that name before? She had to be, Nixe was sure of it…

Once the last slice of cake was handed to Erys—Arriete politely refused, stating, “I cannot eat human food. It goes straight through me!” which prompted a few giggles around the room, as well as an admission that Miri had come up with that quip—most of the girls sat down to eat. A few conversations started up, between Miri and Parker and between Elvie and Erys. Chandra glanced Nixe’s way a few times, as if unable to understand why Nixe hadn’t started eating.

The cake did look delectable, but even if she didn’t have anything to add to the chatter, its mere presence calmed Nixe’s once-racing heart. To have such kind people around, who’d taken the time to do this for her…

…she tried to distract herself from how much it would hurt, and took her first bite of the cake. From there, it was very easy to let her worries slide away.

When she’d finished her last crumb—Nixe had indeed pecked at the plate with her fork to gather every last bit of cake—Elvie pulled out a gift-wrapped box from a cupboard. “Let’s not forget our present!”

“A present?” Nixe gasped.

“Yeah,” Parker said, “they usually give those out at birthday parties.” Chandra shot her a look; Parker shrugged in response.

Elvie handed it to Nixe, who carefully wrapped it. Within was a cellphone, along with a prepaid card. “We all got a little together, and figured this was a great way to help you keep in touch with all of us!”

“You won’t be the one girl in high school without a phone now,” Chandra added.

Was that what they really wanted? For her to remain in contact with her? Even knowing all she’d done?

“Girls…” Nixe said, trying to make herself look up to them. Any effort to stop her eyes from watering proved futile. “T-thank you. Thank you, all of you…”

A round of welcomes and smiles spread through the room, and Nixe felt her smile grow wider, even as her heart ached. This was why she couldn’t bear to be around them as of late. She did genuinely enjoy their company, but…

“Everyone ready to get going?” asked Elvie. After everyone agreed, she replied, “Alright, but I just want to get something from my room. Nixe, mind tagging along?”

That aching became a lump in her stomach. “S-sure,” she said, trying not to look nervous as she rose from her seat.

She followed Elvie upstairs, into her bedroom. Elvie closed the door before turning to Nixe. Her smile had vanished, replaced with a worried frown. “Is everything okay, Nixe? I’m sorry if I’ve made you uncomfortable with all of this.”

“No, no!” Nixe replied, forcing a laugh. “I’m having a great time, and…I’m really thankful for all of this.”

She hung her head, and couldn’t stop the sigh that rose from her chest. “Elvie, I…I really appreciate everything. From that day, and all of you being willing to…not just forgive me, accept me, but…be my friend, too…”

This brought a smile to Elvie’s face, but it soon shrank away. “What’s wrong, Nixe? Have you been in touch with Faye?”

“Yes. She arranged for me to talk with a therapist about stuff—all online, so I wouldn’t be risking my identity. But…”

“But what?”

Nixe leaned against the wall, feeling as if she wouldn’t be able to muster the energy to push herself upright on her own. “They’re deliberating. The Outsiders and the government, I mean. About…me.”

Elvie’s spirit seemed to deflate from those words. “Oh…”

“They’re still trying to decide what punishment I should face for having helped the Luminon,” Nixe continued. “It could be magical enforcement, it could be jail time, or counselling…”

“But you realized what you did was wrong!” Elvie replied. “You helped us stop the Luminon!”

“It doesn’t change the fact that I helped them to begin with.” She found her wishing that they had never invited her over, that they’d never reminded her of how much she appreciated their company. “Whatever they decide, whatever I deserve…I’ll accept it.”

She closed her eyes, letting the seconds pass in silence. The others downstairs likely didn’t have a clue about her inner turmoil. They didn’t realize how likely it was that soon they’d never see Nixe again…

“When are you meeting with them next?”

“Next week,” Nixe replied, without looking to Elvie.

“I’m coming with you, okay?”

Nixe shook her head. “Elvie, you don’t have to—”

“I know,” replied Elvie, “but I will. I’ll tell them that I believe in you, that I trust that you’ve changed. If they want to do something too harsh, I’ll speak up for you. Okay?”

Nixe looked away. She wanted to refuse, to not tell Elvie to bother. Yet what remained in her mind was the smile she saw just before she turned away, the genuine warmth she knew from Elvie from the day she first met her as Ribbon.

Her stomach rippled inside. Nixe turned further away. All she’d done, all the people she’d hurt…

…the friends she’d made, despite all of that. The people who knew her sins, and still had reached out and let her in. The ones who’d trusted her. Who’d befriended her.

She was so scared of losing them. She had wanted to drift away, let them abandon her, to not know that pain if that was to be her fate.

Nixe didn’t want to. She wanted more moments like today, more friendly chats with Elvie and her friends at lunch, more shows and movies together with Miri. She wanted to get to know Chandra and Parker and Arriete better. And Erys too, now that she had the chance again…

She’d given her mom a second chance at understanding. She’d given persuading the Luminon a second chance. All of them, and even Faye and the authorities protecting the peace between worlds, had given _her_ a second chance.

Maybe the music she had to face would be a shrill caw in her life. But whenever it would be over, or if they decided not to lock her away…

Nixe turned back to Elvie, her teary eyes opening.

It was something they all wanted her to have. And she could admit to herself that she wanted the same as well. To let herself have that chance.

She threw her arms around Elvie, hugging her tight. “Thank you, Elvie.”

Elvie returned the hug. “You’re welcome, Nixe. And thank you, too.”

When the two let go of each other, Elvie spoke in a soft, almost-choked voice. “Let’s get going. We shouldn’t keep everyone else waiting.”

Before Elvie could open the door, Nixe said, “Wait…just one thing.” As Elvie looked over her shoulder, Nixe said, “That Outsider, Erys…she’s the one who awakened first, right? The first Without?”

Elvie nodded. “Faye helped me find her. She was going to go back to her world…she felt so bad about what’d happened. I convinced her to stay, and offered to show her more of our world. I’ve really enjoyed getting to know her…”

The way Elvie’s smile crept slowly wider… Nixe felt her own grow as well. “You’re dating her, aren’t you?”

There came the blush. “We’ve…really been getting close…” Elvie’s voice shrank away, until it was naught but cute giggles.

Chuckling herself, Nixe said, “She is quite cute, isn’t she? I’m glad you got to get to know her, and things have been going so well.”

“Thank you, Nixe.” Elvie’s voice was still a little high until she collected herself. “So, time to get going.”

Nixe nodded, and the two headed downstairs. The other girls were waiting at the door, ready to go. Once Nixe and Elvie had put on their shoes, they headed out.

Chatter soon filled the air around Nixe, on all kinds of topics. Nixe added in when she could, when Miri brought up what had happened last night on her favourite show or when Erys asked about other human desserts. Arriete mentioned a few other humans she’d befriended as of late, something that widened Nixe’s smile a touch.

Though the future still held its uncertainties, being around these girls, her friends…even if just having their company was encouraging enough, Nixe knew they’d give her the strength to face whatever came her way.

As they approached the local bowling alley, a cozy-looking brick building with a series of flashing neon signs depicting a ball rushing towards the pins, Nixe made her way ahead of the others. Her fingers wrapped around the door handle, pulling it open and holding it for her friends. Her smile only grew wider as she followed them in, letting the door swing shut behind her.

**The End**


End file.
